Wrong Time Wrong Dimension
by Angel Youkai
Summary: A girl gets tossed into the world of the Inuyasha. Why is she there? What connection does she have the Lord of the Southern Lands? Or the Western Lands? Or Naraku! Rated for language and sexual content. Selfinsert.
1. 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, therefore I do not own Sesshoumaru :sniffle: or any of the characters in this story except for Angel, because that's me because all my fanfics are self-inserts because I am the great and powerful Angel Youkai. All bow down and worship my greatness. Oops, getting a bit off topic. So yeah, anyway I don't own Inuyasha.

Sorry the story was down for so long. Someone reported it and it was taken down, I still don't know why. I would appreciate that whoever is responsible please tell me why.

Oh, and a note for those of you reading this for the first tim, the story gets off to a bit of a slow start in the first few chapters, but it gets better I swear.

Now on to my great, wonderful, and all the rest of that crap, story...

"Ow, my head..." Angel said as she sat up in the middle of the forest. "Where in the seven hells am I?" She got no reply. She stood up to try to figure out what happened. She remembered sitting form of the TV, with a bowl of ramen about to watch one of her favorite animes: Inuyasha. They finished the recap then... everything went black and she woke up in this forest. Wait a sec, watching Inuyasha, waking up in a forest that, by what she had seen of it, closely resembled Inuyasha's Forest. No fucking way had she just been pulled into the TV.

Well, I might as well try to find a village or something. If this is in fact, Inuyasha's Forest, the closest one should be the one from the show. Just try to sense or smell people, or ramen if Kagome or Inuyasha are around. Oh, that's right, I should be able to smell the hanyou, she thought as she walked, sniffing the air. Oh, fuck. Today is that episode with Sesshoumaru. I am totally going to screw up the balance. He is my whole reason for watching the show, well, that and watching Inuyasha get beaten up on occasion.

"Finally," she said out loud when the scent of the village got very strong and it came into view. She raced down the hill to the village. Once she arrived in the place she had been memorizing every detail of for the past few years, she counted down the rows to figure out which house was Lady Kaede's. People were giving her funny looks as they walked past her, probably, and rightfully, assuming she was a demon. She had waist-length, blue hair, ruby-red eyes, claws, which she had painted black, blue markings above her eyes (like Sesshoumaru's. I know, I know, his are red), dark red lips, the same color as her eyes, and she wore a very not-medieval-Japan outfit. It was dark green leggings tucked into black, leather boots that had a virtually no heel at all (think anime shoes), and her shirt was a black, sleeveless shirt with a dark green dragon design around it. The fact that the shirt had no sleeves showed off the fact that she had a very interesting tattoo on her right forearm. A swirl of blue and green flames in a glass ball with the characters for youkai in the middle. She was also carrying a small black bag over her shoulder. She wasn't going to smile at the people, that would only scare them more.

She walked right up to the door and didn't even bother knocking; she just walked right in. It's a good thing she counted correctly.

"Hey, who're you?" Inuyasha asked the intruder.

"Me? I'm Angel Youkai, and no, I'm not after the Shikon no Tama, so relax yourself," she said as if she had rehearsed it.

"You're from my time," Kagome said.

"Yeah, sort of. I'm from a different reality."

"The what're you doin here?" Inuyasha demanded.

"To be honest, I have no idea," she said.

"Wait, I'm still stuck on the 'different reality' part," Kagome said. "If you're from a different reality, then how do you know about the Shikon No Tama?"

"It's really quite simple. You see, in my dimension, it's exactly the same as yours, except for one thing: Inuyasha is the name of an anime show about a half dog demon and a reincarnated miko who travels through time to collect the shards of the jewel that she shattered in the process of killing the crow demon that had eaten it. You with me so far?"

Kagome nodded, but Inuyasha asked her, "What the hell is anime and television, and how do you know all this stuff?"

:sweatdrop:fall over anime style:

"I'll explain that later, Inuyasha," Kagome said, wanting more information from Angel. "Angel, you said that in your world, this is a television show, so do you know if we ever get all the Shikon shards and kill Naraku?"

"Sorry, but it's an incomplete series. It's new and I've only seen from when you fall into the well to now," she explained. "Therefore, Kagome, I do not know who Inuyasha picks."

Kagome blushed, "Why would I want to know that?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because you-"

"Okay, I get the point," Kagome cut her off.

"But to sort of answer you previous question, there are a lot of fanfics about all different versions of that. In some you all live happily ever after, blah, blah, blah.

And in others, the extreme weirdness ensues. Like, you would not believe how many there are about Inuyasha choosing Kikyo then Kagome ending up with Sesshoumaru, occasionally becoming a demon," the look on both of their faces was enough to tell Angel what they thought of that possibility. "As I said, extreme weirdness." (actually, those are some of my favorites)

"Ya got that right! Who in their right minds would ever want to even be near that bastard?" Inuyasha yelled.

"Not so loud," Angel said, covering her sensitive ears, which Inuyasha and Kagome were only then noticing were pointed. "As an answer to that question let me just say, millions of fan girls the world over. And me. I am not a fan girl."

"Then what are you?" Inuyasha asked, more referring to the type of youkai she was.

"I'm a tri-fire youkai."

"A what?" Kagome had never heard of that race.

"A fire demon with three different, very deadly, flame attacks," Inuyasha apparently had.

"Two points for the hanyou. One for the correct answer and the other for the compliment," she said with an almost smile. "Glass Flame, Acid Flame, and Ice Flame."

"Those are some weird names for fire attacks," Kagome commented.

"Weird names? Yes. Effective? Hell yes. So where'd the others go?" Angel asked, wanting to meet them.

"They should be back soon," Kagome said, trying to sound not too uncomfortable and failing at it miserably.

"Did you know that you smell like ramen?" Inuyasha had gotten very close to her and was sniffing her.

"Yes, I just about to eat some when I was pulled into my TV, or however I got here," she said, pushing his face away. "Now quit sniffing me, I'm not cocaine."

"What?" TV, he had heard Kagome mention, but what the seven hells was cocaine? "Hey, you smell like something else too."

"I bet I smell like a lot of things, now leave me alone," she scooted away from the offending hanyou.

"Wait a minute, it smells like strange ink," he reached into the bag where she had dropped it on the floor trying to get away from him. He pulled out a piece of paper that was emitting the smell. It was a picture of Sesshoumaru in both forms, the full demon form standing in front, with half the moon in the background. (My favorite picture of him) "What the fuck are you doing with a picture of Sesshoumaru in your bag!"

"Give that back, you'll ruin it," she said, but he ran out the door. She chased after him, yelling threats and profanities the entire time. She caught up to him and grabbed the collar of his shirt, almost choking him from the momentum. "Fork it over, half-breed." She knew how to get him mad.

"What did you call me?" he growled.

"Works every time," she was suddenly standing about twenty feet away holding the picture and something else. "Missing something?" The other thing was the Tetsusaiga.

"Wha- how did you get that?" he was already racing towards her.

"One thing you have to learn about fire demons," she said from a tree behind him. "We are impossibly fast. You, on the other hand, are only fast when Kagome's in danger, which she isn't. You have no hope of catching me. The only reason you got so far ahead was because I enjoy a good chase."

I can't even see her movements, how the hell am I supposed to get Tetsusaiga back?

"You, hanyou, are going to be very surprised what I do with this sword," she smirked and disappeared from view. Inuyasha really was not anxious to find out.

When Angel got back to the village, she knew the others in the group had returned from wherever they had gone. She masked her aura and went back to the hut.

"Where's Inuyasha?" Kagome asked almost as soon as she got in the door.

"Probably still searching for me," she said vaguely.

"Why would he be looking for you? Didn't you just run out of here chasing him?" Kagome was getting a little confused.

"Kagome, why don't you introduce me to this lovely woman?" Miroku, who else.

"Ah, the lecherous monk with the cursed hand," Angel said, catching him way off guard. "Go ahead and say it, I dare you."

"Say what?" he asked innocently.

"Oh, come off it. You, Sango, Kagome, and I know what. I seen it a hundred times and no doubt will see it ten times that in the future. Get it over with," she egged him on.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he continued with the innocent act.

"Let me see if I can jog your memory for you then." She cleared her throat and began ticking things off on her fingers. "Family mission, imminent death without the death of Naraku, your pure lechery, did I miss anything?"

"Who are you?" Sango asked curiously.

"Well, I'm not the Easter Bunny," she said sarcastically. "My name is Angel, I'm sort of from Kagome's time."

"Then how'd you know all that stuff about Miroku," Shippou asked from his perch atop Kagome's head.

"I didn't get to show this here yet, but-" she was cut off by Inuyasha storming in the door.

"You came back here! I was searching through the forest and you were here the entire time!" he didn't seem too happy. "Where did you put it? Give it back!"

"Use your nose if you want it so badly," she said continuing what she had been doing. She pulled out the seventh Inuyasha graphic novel. The one where Sesshoumaru gets the human arm

"What is that?" Inuyasha momentarily forgot the sword when he saw his picture on the cover.

"One of the many ways people can see your adventures for the Shikon no Tama," said Angel.

"People can what?" Miroku wanted to make sure he had heard correctly.

"Not from here, people from my world. I'm from a different reality," she started to explain yet again. She opened the book. "Look, there's Naraku, Sesshoumaru, you guys, Sesshoumaru's fight with Inuyasha, the hell wasps, Jaken after Miroku beat him up, Sesshoumaru sticking his arm through Inuyasha's stomach, and a whole lot more." She would have explained more, but there was a big commotion outside.

"Little brother, I have come for Father's sword." Guess who!

"It's about time he showed up," Angel said. "I thought he was never gonna get here."

"You knew Sesshoumaru was coming here!"

"Why else would I have stuck around?" she asked as if it should have been obvious.

"You are really weird, did you know that?" Kagome said.

"What's your point?" she turned and went outside. Oh my gods! He's even hotter in person! Stay calm Hey, Miroku never asked her to bear his child. That's a first

"Who are you wench?" Sesshoumaru asked.

Dammit! Work mouth "I'm Angel," she said coolly. "And I have a present for you."

"Unless it's my brother's carcass, I have no want of it," he said.

"If only it were that. No, it's something just as good," she disappeared and reappeared a second later holding none other than Tetsusaiga.

"Inuyasha, how did she get the Tetsusaiga and WHY can she touch it?" Kagome yelled in Inuyasha's poor, sensitive ear.

"She's too fast and I don't know," he answered both questions at once.

"You would give me the Tetsusaiga?" Sesshoumaru was too bewildered to react for a moment.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" she answered. "Wow, I shocked Sesshoumaru. My life is complete, I can die happy. Did I just say that out loud? Damn."

"You are very strange," Sesshoumaru didn't make it sound like an insult or a compliment.

"I know. Do you want the sword or not?"

"Don't give that to him!" Inuyasha shouted.

"Why shouldn't I? And I swear if you say anything along the lines of 'he's a psychopath' or 'he'll kill us all', it won't do you much good because, well I just don't care. I've seen him with the sword as you know, and," she stopped as she seemed to realize something. "Dammit, that stupid warding spell." She found it very difficult to resist the urge to hit something.

"That does appear to be an obstacle," Sesshoumaru said, trying to ignore that 'psychopath' comment.

"Or maybe not," Angel seemed to have an idea. "Where's Rin?"

"What does she have to do with this?" he sounded much farther from happy than he did a second ago.

"Catch," she tossed him the sword. Then, Sesshoumaru was holding the Tetsusaiga without the aide of a human appendage. If he would have allowed himself to show any emotion, he might have appeared happy or shocked, or perhaps both.

"Kagome, get out of here," Inuyasha said. "Warn the villagers."

"Right," she ran away.

"Why'd she run? It was just about to get very interesting," Angel said.

"Yes, this will be interesting," agreed Sesshoumaru.

"But you can't kill him," Angel said as a warning.

"What did you say, wench?" Sesshoumaru was beginning to think this girl was just insane.

"If you kill him, the show ends in my world and I might not be able to get back there at all, plus it will majorly upset the balance if my actions lead to Inuyasha's death," she explained quickly. As if he has any idea what she's talking about "So you'll just have to settle for crippling him."

"Stop your insane ramblings and get to the point," Sesshoumaru grew impatient.

"My point is, you'll have to exact your revenge on Inuyasha without killing him, I can't believe I just said that. You know what? Never mind, I'm just going to try to find a way back home so you can do whatever you want. Kill him, maim him, leave his sorry ass alone, I don't give a damn anymore." She turned and walked away.

"She's nuts," Inuyasha said quietly. "And she can't make up her mind for her life."

"But she left yours in my capable hands, brother," Sesshoumaru said, ready to cut off Inuyasha's arm in return for what he had taken from him. They fought.

As Angel walked through the forest, there was a scent she had never smelled before, but recognized none the less. Naraku.

"I'm just glad I don't have any jewel shards," she mumbled to herself as she trudged along looking for the spot where she woke up. "I'm really not in the mood to deal with anyone crazier than me." She kept walking but his scent only grew stronger, and she was not going seem afraid and turn around.

"Where did you go?" the familiar voice echoed from all around her. It sent chills up her spine that she repressed.

"What the hell are you talking about, psycho?" she asked the creepy voice. "Leave me alone." She didn't sound scared, just bored. You should have just turned around and walked away, but no. You had to be fearless and walk knowingly into Naraku's midst. Stubborn

"I brought you to this world to kill Inuyasha. I could sense your hatred for him and your power through dimensional walls," creepy voice.

"Really? You know who I hate more than Inuyasha? You. Oh well, too bad, bet that puts a damper on whatever loony scheme you were gonna pull this time, Naraku," she finally decided it would be a good time to turn around. A tentacle came shooting out of nowhere to grab her around the waist, but she just barely managed to get out of the way. She grabbed hold of it and forced a blast of her Ice flame up the tentacle hoping to reach the owner. It erupted in blue flames and froze and shattered in the fire. But Naraku was still alive.

"You can't kill me so easily," he laughed that eerie laugh. "Kukukuku."

"Do you have any idea how many times I've heard that line?" Angel said suddenly. "Come up with something original." That did it. It pissed him off. He sent in tentacles from every direction with the intent to kill. She was dodging every single one, but the noise they created was starting to confuse her about where they were coming from. Then, all the sounds managed to mask out the whistling of one tentacle, but one was all he needed. One in the right spot, right through her gut. It drove her to the ground but did not pass completely through.


	2. 2

Chapter 2

Thoughts and Actions

Quick note: in this fic, Sess-chan has both arms, only so that he can- well you'll see

Inuyasha was doing his best to keep Sesshoumaru's blows directed away from the village, and Kagome. It was amazing he had lasted this long.

"Inuyasha, you cannot stand against me for long. Without your woman here, your fighting is hopelessly slow," Sesshoumaru said preparing for another attack.

"Kagome ain't my woman," Inuyasha retorted while trying to get a hit in without being hit. He couldn't just rip off the hand like last time, how the hell was he going to get the Tetsusaiga back now?

"But she will, no doubt, mourn you after I kill you," Sesshoumaru missed an obvious opening and regretted it when Inuyasha took advantage of the oversight by driving a kick into his arm. Since when does Inuyasha kick when he fights? Damn, I can't get that strange woman out of my thoughts. It will cost her dearly if I lose the Tetsusaiga because I could not concentrate. Where did she go? No, stop, you don't care where she went, you just care about killing Inuyasha and keeping the Tetsusaiga, he berated himself.

"Sesshoumaru, what's a matter? You're getting sloppy," Inuyasha had noticed. "Your mind is somewhere else." Wow, Inuyasha's being really attentive today. That is, until he smelled Naraku nearby. Of course, this found him on his back with the Tetsusaiga to his throat.

"Who is sloppy? I'm feeling generous today. Surrender and leave or die." Sesshoumaru pressed the sword just hard enough to draw a line of blood. Inuyasha didn't get a chance to respond.

Angel tried to get up but to no avail.

"It's just a change in plans," Naraku amended. "I will still use you against Inuyasha, but in a much different manner."

"You just tried to turn me into a pin cushion! What makes you think I'm going to LET you do anything?" she asked still trying to get up without increasing the flow of blood. She rolled to her side and pushed herself up on her arms, making sure not to let them slip out from under her.

"Perhaps it's the fact that you cannot even manage to sit up," he said. The sarcasm was not wasted on her.

She knew he was right, but she was not going to admit it. "I'm fine," she lied. "Any minute now you're going to be on your ass begging for mercy." and then the Easter Bunny is going to hop out and eat your heart. Both have about the same likelihood of happening she thought with disdain. She gave getting to her feet one more valiant try. It was unsuccessful and she slumped to the ground in the small pool of blood that had spilled from her abdomen. Naraku laughed at her and lifted her up. She barely had the strength to stay awake and make sure her he didn't try anything kinky, let alone the strength to get away from him. Yuck! Sorry for putting that thought in your heads He carried her in the opposite direction she had been traveling, in other words, back towards the village. Angel now noticed that there was a long slice up the back of her arm. It wasn't very deep but enough so that the blood was dripping off onto her, already ruined shirt.

Now is the perfect chance to use the Acid Flame. But if it doesn't work it'll have used so much energy that I'll have practically screwed MYSELF over Angel thought, contemplating whether or not it was worth the risk. She decided it was. She shifted her body as if she were trying to get less uncomfortable, but really she was just trying to get in a better position for the blast. Then she fired off the most powerful force of energy in the green flames she could summon. It was enough. It sent both Naraku and her flying in opposite directions.

Sesshoumaru was about to let the Tetsusaiga leave a rather large gaping hole in his half brother's neck, but instead had to turn to the side to keep from getting toppled over. He dropped the great sword in order to catch the female fire demon that had just come flying into his body. He absorbed most of the impact as if it had been a pillow thrown at him instead of a person. He looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms then turned to regrettably notice that he had in fact let his grip on the mighty Tetsusaiga slip for her when he could have easily dodged her. Inuyasha had already regained possession of the sword and was running away to get his friends. He shifted her weight in his arms so her could carry her more easily. This is going to be a long and interesting day he thought as he tried to decide where exactly to take her. His palace was too far away, he couldn't very well stay in the forest with her in this condition, and Rin was still waiting with Jaken for his signal.

After getting Rin and Jaken and having the chance to think it over, he came to the conclusion that there was only one logical option. He had a very sure feeling that he would regret this decision. He would take her to the old priestess woman in that village of Inuyasha's. Sesshoumaru needed to be alone with his thoughts to figure out what was going on in his head in regards to this girl, Angel.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, is that lady going to be Rin's new mother?" his young charge asked interrupting his ponderings, the exact reason he had to be alone to sort through this. He decided the best thing to do would be to send her and Jaken home, so that he wouldn't be worrying over them (well Rin mostly) out alone in the forest.

Sesshoumaru summoned the two-headed dragon to take them back. "Rin," he said." Go back with Jaken to the palace and wait for me there. I cannot be certain as to how long I'll be away."

"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama," the girl said as obedient as ever to him.

He found it very difficult to resist the urge to either smile or sigh. Seeing the look on his lord's face and the woman in his arms, Jaken knew better than to complain about being left with the human for an even longer period of time. He silently complied as he climbed up on the dragon's back and took the reigns.

Once they had taken off into the air, Sesshoumaru turned back toward the village and began the short journey. (Short meaning it took only a few minutes for him to walk there)

As the demon lord stepped into the small village, the people scattered in every direction, hiding. It gave him some comfort to know that he was feared even outside his lands. Only one hut was different from the others. Instead of running to hide, the people inside came out, a monk, two priestesses, a kitsune, a demon slayer, and a hanyou.

"Sesshoumaru! What are you doing here, again!" Inuyasha was **very** surprised to see his older brother for a second time in one day, one hour especially.

"I did not come to fight you, Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru stated to everyone's surprise, even his own disbelief. "I have come to see if that old priestess could help heal this girl." He indicated the unconscious youkai in his grip.

"You've gotta be kidding me," Inuyasha displayed his non-belief quite well. "Why would we want to help either of you?"

"She is the reason I dropped that sword you are holding," he admitted. "You should be thankful to her."

"Hah! She's the reason you had it at all, what thanks does she deserve?' Inuyasha countered.

"I would have gotten it with or without her help," Sesshoumaru stated in all his mighty arrogance. "She only made it all much simpler."

"Inuyasha, stop bickering with your brother over whether or not we'll help Angel-san," Miroku interrupted. "I think the real question is, **can** Kaede-baba help her?"

"Listen to the monk, Inuyasha. It may save your life," Sesshoumaru threatened.

"Aye, ye should not take it upon yourself to speak for all of us," Kaede said. Gotta love her sometimes "I will see if there is anything I can do for her."

"At least your friends have some sense, little brother," Sesshoumaru was all but sticking his tongue out and chanting some immature nonsense like 'nya-nya-nya-nya-nya' in spite of Inuyasha. "I do still know how to change your opinion of her as well."

"Yeah? How?" the hanyou asked skeptically.

"It's quite simple," Sesshoumaru walked into the hut so that Inuyasha had to follow him to hear. "Who's scent does she have on her body?"

Inuyasha took only a second to realize, "Naraku."

"Yes," Sesshoumaru continued. "And there would be only one explanation as to the reason behind Angel's condition. A common enemy makes you allies of a sort." He moved to place Angel on the mat on the floor, but even in her unconscious state, she still held on to the sleeve of his kimono, distracting his train of thought. What is she doing?

"Look at her arm," Kagome said not exactly sounding pleased. They did look, and what they saw explained Kagome's tone of voice. Angel's right arm was bloodied and burned.

"Naraku's got a lot to answer for, and this is just one more thing on the list," Inuyasha stated sounding quite noble, as opposed to his usual 'feh' attitude.

Now was the time Angel "chose" to wake up, everyone staring at her and Sesshoumaru leaning over her because her left hand was holding his kimono sleeve. "What did I miss?" This question drew a few small smiles from the group.

"I think the real question is what did **we** miss?" Miroku said from his position dangerously close to Sango's smack trigger (i.e.- her butt).

"What do you mean?" Angel asked after letting go of Sesshoumaru.

And the trigger has been activated:SMACK:

"Why do have Naraku's scent on you and what happened to your arm?" Inuyasha said, ignoring the monk with the handprint on his face and the pissed off demon slayer.

"Damn," she said after seeing the damage inflicted on her arm. "Every single time I use that attack... I hope I caused some serious pain for that asshole."

"You might want to explain what you mean," suggested the little kitsune.

"Good idea," she gave him a small smile, hoping it didn't scare him. "I used the Acid Flame, my most powerful attack. Because Naraku was being his usual arrogant, snotty self and trying to either control or kill me, I had the opportunity to use it, so I did. He had cut my arm during the fight, and because having blood flowing from my arm makes the attack all that much stronger, I think I put him in a serious amount of pain if he was lucky enough to avoid the concentrated point. If he wasn't lucky, he's dead. And since Miroku hasn't said 'It's a miracle, I'm no longer a human vacuum cleaner', I'm pretty sure he's, unfortunately, still alive."

"What's a vacuum cleaner?"

:SWEATDROP: "Did you hear anything I just said besides home appliance!" she was getting a bit frustrated.

"Ye must relax, and Inuyasha, stop vexing her," Kaede was trying to calm everyone down.

"I'm fine." Angel sat up too fast and winced. "Look, it's stopped bleeding, and my arm is healing normally. I should be good as new by Saturday."

"I never did find out what Saturday was," said Inuyasha. The time Kagome wanted to be back for her date with Hojo

"I'm glad I was sitting for that one..." Angel said sarcastically. She asked Kagome to hand her the bag that was right next to her.

"Sure, though the last time we dealt with this bag, you wound up chasing Inuyasha through the forest," Kagome commented trying to lighten the mood as she handed the bag over.

"Well, it was one of my favorite pictures, along with my computer desktop pic," she answered in an equally light tone.

"Does anyone have a clue what she is talking about," Miroku asked the others softly.

"No, but I think she's got Pocky in her bag," Shippou said excitedly.

"Here you go Shippou-chan," Angel tossed the kit a small pack of Pocky.

"Wow, I don't know what Inuyasha was talking about," Shippou said happily crunching his strawberry Pocky sticks. "You're not any of those stuff he called you."

"Really...?"

"Hey, what else you got in that bag?" Inuyasha was suddenly very curious about its contents.

Angel decided to humor the hanyou (and torture him of course.) "Pretty much everything I need: food, cell phone, laptop, books, manga, magazines, a change of clothes (just in case), cash, extra accessories..."

"You do realize they have no clue what most of that stuff is, right?" Kagome asked.

"Yes, but Inuyasha's the one who ventured the question. It isn't my fault he was unprepared for the answer. And actually it reminds me that I have to check my e-mail," she said as she pulled out her small Dell notebook.

"How can you fit a laptop in a bag that size? And how can you connect to the net from here?" Kagome wanted to know. Everyone else just wanted to know what the thing was.

"Spells, plain and simple. A seamsaver spell and a super-ant spell," she stated matter-of-factly.

"'Seamsaver and super-ant'? what?" not even Kagome got that part.

"Hm, well a screensaver keeps an image from burning onto the screen, right? So a seamsaver makes sort of a portal inside the bag too keep the seams from busting," she explained. "And super-ant is just short for 'super antenna'. I have the same spell, in a much lower grade, on my cell. Basically, all it means is I can connect from anywhere in the universe, even parallel dimensions." They only got about half of what she was talking about.

"Um, would mind repeating that in a language we understand?" Inuyasha had to speak first.

"Oh, I give up," Angel flopped back down, a bit too hard. "Oww..."

"Enough, she will never get the rest she needs if ye keep asking her all these questions," Kaede interrupted them. "And her wounds need to be properly bandaged. That means the men leave"

All four males got up to leave, though Miroku needed an extra "push" from Sango.

Long chapter... was it good, though?

Codependence: you depend on me for new chapter of the story/ I depend on you for approval. It all works out


	3. 3

Chapter 3

No notes for this chapter except this one, I guess: no notes. ;

While the women were inside dressing Angel's wounds, the four males, Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, Miroku, and Shippou, waited outside, talking a bit.

"Inuyasha?" Shippou inquired from his spot atop Miroku's head. "Why is your brother still here?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha replied harshly. "It's not like I ever understood him."

"I too, have been wondering about Sesshoumaru's motives for being here," Miroku interjected. "The most obvious reason would be trying to get the Tetsusaiga, I am beginning to think it might have something to do with a certain demoness."

"Don't be ridiculous!" For a moment, they thought Inuyasha was defending his brother. "As if Sesshoumaru could possibly have any other feelings besides cruelty and hatred. Not gonna happen." I guess the same goes for his defending him.

"I wouldn't be so sure, Inuyasha," Miroku argued. "He did drop the Tetsusaiga to catch her."

"That's just cause he's stupid," Inuyasha said.

"You know I can hear you?" Sesshoumaru interrupted. He was standing apart from the three friends, but he couldn't help hearing the conversation. He doesn't eavesdrop.

Miroku seemed almost totally unfazed. "Well, then you would be able to answer that question yourself, and we wouldn't have to resort to our other, less reliable source." Meaning Inuyasha, of course.

"Why on earth would I want to explain myself to a human, a half-breed, and a child?"

"Because our conclusions would be left up to our own speculation... In other words, we believe you have an infatuation with Angel," Miroku explained.

"That's completely absurd," said Sesshoumaru a bit too quickly. "That girl is nothing to me." He could tell they didn't believe him. In fact, he wasn't sure if he believed himself, which he was sure was not a good sign.

"Sesshoumaru likes Angel, Sesshoumaru likes Angel," Shippou chanted, though not moving from atop Miroku's head.

"You tread dangerously, kitsune," Sesshoumaru warned.

"Kagome, Sesshoumaru threatened me!" Shippou wailed, running into the small house.

"What does he expect that human girl to do?" Sesshoumaru asked aloud.

His question was answered when the kit didn't return. The answer: keep Shippou inside.

"If they're letting Shippou stay inside, maybe that means they've finished and we can go back in too," Miroku suggested, about to walk through the door.

"Not so fast, lecher," Inuyasha stopped him. "I know you're just tryin to get a glimpse of whatever ya can before you get knocked around again for it."

"Why, of course that's not the case at all, Inuyasha," Miroku's feigned innocence and hurt were easily recognized for what they were.

"Yeah, sure. We're gonna wait till they tell us they're finished."

"You can come back in, now," Sango informed them a few minutes later, and the three men came back into the room. Angel was sitting against a wall with, much to Miroku's, and for some reason (that we all know) Sesshoumaru's dismay, another shirt on.

"When are you leaving?" Inuyasha asked bluntly.

"As soon as I find a way, hanyou," she said, bringing her left hand up to massage her temple in an effort to fend off a headache.

"Quit callin' me that! You sound like Sesshoumaru..."

"I'll take that as a complement so that I don't have to waste energy smacking you around," she said wearily.

Sesshoumaru inclined his head ever so slightly. This was the closest he was willing to come to expressing concern at how tired her voice sounded. He tried to tell himself that it was just dealing with Inuyasha, that could get tired very quickly. But when he looked at her to respond to her little comment, he managed to do very good job of hiding his surprise at seeing her stifle a yawn, a rather large one at that. "You think yourself to be similar to this Sesshoumaru?"

"No, the one standing behind you," she replied, her cynical attitude back in its rightful place. "And it was your brother that said, though he wasn't the first. I just took it as a compliment, because when it comes down to it anyone with half a brain can see that it's better to be compared to someone who is smart, calm, collected, and a totally hottie. And let me reiterate the fact that I am NOT random, rabid fangirl willing to do anything for a hickey."

"Your sure sound like one... whatever a fangirl is," Inuyasha commented.

"You just shut up. You are an idiot, especially when it comes to women. You don't know squat about half of what goes on around you" she turned on Inuyasha.

"Wha- what? What the fuck are you talking about!"

"Look at Kagome and tell me what you see," she said a fraction of a hair gentler.

"Huh?" But he did look at Kagome, who was sitting there with a much better idea of what Angel was talking about. "I see Kagome."

"Exactly, you see Kagome, not a copy of Kikyo or a shard detector. Kikyo is a psycho that just wants both of you dead which she has made perfectly clear behind your back," she told him. She was thinking back to episodes when Kikyo would try to kill Kagome, and the younger miko wouldn't even tell Inuyasha because she was trying to protect Kikyo. "Kagome, you are way to nice. If you weren't Japanese, I'd swear you were a blonde, as well, because you have a tendency to be a bit of a ditz too. You don't have to protect Kikyo."

"What are you babbling about, you lunatic? I'm the one that's supposed t protect Kikyo," Inuyasha said, still unaware of past encounters.

"Kagome was protecting her from you..."

"Stop, please," This time Kagome spoke up.

"Yes, you're right. I got a bit carried away. I'm sorry, but this sort of complication when it comes to pairing pisses me off. It's usually painfully obvious who should end up with whom, but then egos and pride, and just stubborn blindness always get in the way. But I have said way too much."

"I must take my leave. I have duties to attend to in my lands," Sesshoumaru said, standing to leave. "Inuyasha, you should take what the girl has said into consideration."

"Right, I should get going as well. I still need to try to find a way to get back to my world," Angel stood as well, picking up her bag and the rest of her things and shoving them into it. "It's been... interesting to say the least." Both of them walked to the door, Sesshoumaru's manners allowing Angel to exit first.

"Will you be alright in your injured state?" Sesshoumaru asked, once they were both outside. The sky was getting steadily cloudier. "I don't want to have to catch you as you go flying through the air again."

"Was that an almost joke? I'll be fine, don't worry. I just really have to get back home, though I think I would've liked to meet Rin, she really is very cute," she smiled her first genuine smile all day.

"I wasn't worried." Angel noticed that that was the only part of her statement that he addressed, almost as if to prove a point, probably more to himself than to her. "You know," he spoke again. "You said that Naraku isn't dead. I do not think it is safe for you to be traveling alone. You are also covered in the scent of blood. Many youkai would be attracted by the smell."

"I'm a big girl now, and I know how to take care of myself. I've gotten used to it..." she trailed off for moment. "Besides I'm not going to travel too far. I'm just going to spot where I woke up, I'll hopefully for some kind of clue."

"Well, perhaps I should travel with you, just to be cautious." He stepped toward her, the mists already forming at his feet.

"No," she stepped back. "I ca- I mean, I don't need a babysitter. For a guy who's not worried, you hide it very well by acting concerned." She tried to get him to leave. She refused to allow herself to become attached to this world in any way.

"If Naraku is after you, you should be very careful," he warned her.

"I know and I will. Thank you and good night," she turned and walked away, seeing that he wasn't going to. Before she realized what she was doing she sped up until he was out of range of her senses. When she did stop, she leaned against a tree and slip to the ground on her knees, clutching at the wounds on her arm and stomach. "Why did I have to be so stupid! I let my emotions get the best of me and forgot any and all control of my mouth. I can never let that happen again." She rested for a while longer, but got up when she felt a shift in the air. She looked around noticed that the color and definition of things was suddenly much sharper, just like before a before a big rain.

"Perfect, just what I need. I had to be a dork and refuse to put an umbrella in my bag cause it would be too Mary Poppins. Well, I just hope it holds off until I can find somewhere to keep cover." She walked while talking to herself. There was a sudden crack of thunder and the sky seemed to have been torn open at the amount of rain that was poured forth. "Yep, this is just great..."

Her luck went from bad to worse. She kept walking, ignoring when each of her shoes came off in the mud. She cursed at the rabbit that ran out from it cover, tripping her in the process and causing her to land on her bum in the mud. When she finally found a rock face, she sat under a ledge, well, plopped is more like it.

She peeled off her socks, which by now were no longer serving any purpose at all. She came to a dilemma when it came to the rest of her clothes though. Her pants were soaked through and muddy, not to mention sticking to her in an unpleasant fashion. The same could be said about her shirt, minus the mud. She was highly unpleased by the fact that it was a white shirt. She could have slapped herself for that lapse in judgment but was thankful that she was wearing a bra, and even more so that it was a sports bra.

"You know what? Fuck the rules of common decency." With that said, she peeled off the shirt and rung it out. After digging futilely in her bag to find shorts or extra pants of some kind, she decided to follow her own advice and screw common decency. Her pants were gross, so instead of treating them like the shirt, she discarded them along with the mud-covered socks.

Angel resolved to wait the storm out under the ledge where it was at least relatively dry, if not warm. Being that it showed no signs of letting up anytime soon and that she could sense no demons close by, she gave in and laid down to fall asleep.


	4. 4

I know that the first two chapters seemed a bit choppy, but I think I've gotten better, what about you? Let me know in a review.

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Recap: Angel fell asleep under a rock ledge in her bra and panties.

The sun felt warm in the large flower-filled field. "Anubis," Angel called to her dog. The year-old, black lab, Doberman mix sprang out and tackled the waiting girl. "Good girl." Angel laughed as she wrestled with the puppy. When she did get up, she picked up a stick and threw it for Anubis to retrieve. But it was not Anubis that returned. No, it was a proud, white dog, with red marking around his mouth and a dark crescent moon on his forehead. He came to a stop, towering over Angel.

"Sesshoumaru? No, go back to the Western Lands... please," she turned away from the youkai lord but turned back when she heard an odd thump. Sesshoumaru, stone-cold lord had just gone into the play bow. And... he was wagging his tail! "Holy fuckers..." 'He's acting just like a puppy.'

"Wow, you're really big. How can you expect me to play with you when I can't even reach the top of your head?" She watched in awe as he scaled himself down to the size of a large puppy. He leapt at her, his paws landing squarely on her chest, knocking flat on her back. She wrestled playfully with him, but when she rolled over on him, it was not longer a puppy she was looking at. She was staring into the grinning face of the handsome Lord Sesshoumaru, though the grin seemed oddly self-satisfied, as if he'd just proven a point.

"Comfortable?" his low voice rumbled down to her core. Immediately, she stood herself up then offered him a hand to get up.

The clawed hand that took hers pulled her into an embrace against a hard chest. She leaned her head back to look at his face once more but found herself looking into the cruel, burgundy eyes of a hanyou whom many wished dead. Even worse, she found herself in the state in which she fell asleep in: cold, wet, and in her undergarments.

"You're mine..." He pulled her against him again, causing her to shiver from cold and disgust. "You always have been."

"Get the hell away from me, you filthy- ugh!" her insult was cut short when Naraku grabbed her by the neck and held her about a foot off the ground. The sunny sky turned dark and cloudy as his miasma rolled in like a thick blanket of fog. Bringing her to him, at the same time, sliding his hand around to hold the back of her neck and the other to her lower back, pressing her to him, he overtook her mouth with his in a possessive kiss. She brought her hands to his chest and pushed herself away from him.

"No, this is all wrong! None of this is supposed to be happening," she said, slightly breathless. "Just let me go back to my own world and you can go back to plotting and planning your twisted little heart out."

"Ah, but therein lies the problem. You are part of my plan, and you are already back in your own world," he paused to let it sink in.

"What?"

"But you may want to go back the real world before I have to hurt this lovely creature further." He stepped aside to reveal the once regal Sesshoumaru in a bloody heap on the ground. He raised his arm, then it plunged through the air to deliver the final blow. She dove toward him, arm outreached to try to stop him, but knowing that even with her speed, the distance would cause her to be too late.

"Sesshoumaru!" Angel sat bolt upright in bed. She looked at her outstretched arm and realized she was dry and wearing a white sleeping robe. But it was very loose, nearly slipping off her shoulders, and the sleeves almost drooped off her fingers even though they were not even remotely stretched out. She looked around and saw that she was sitting in a western-style bed with silk sheets and comforter. The room was large, with a fireplace at one wall, a screen door at another, and a balcony at the last. The wall behind her had a large painting above the headboard. In fact, it was a portrait...of Sesshoumaru as a child and a gentleman that looked about the age Sesshoumaru was now.

Angel's vocal outburst had drawn some attention, as was brought to her own attention when a shadow appeared and someone knocked on the other side of the screen door. Without waiting for an answer, the person slid open the screen and stepped through. Apparently, Sesshoumaru thought that knocking was only necessary as a warning to let someone know that he was coming in, whether they liked it or not.

"You're awake," he said in his usual monotone.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious. Where, may I ask, is my bag?" She brought her legs around to kneel and leaned forward, folding her hands in her lap with an inquisitive look on her face.

"You may want to close your robe," he smirked and gestured to the already loose robe, and the position in which she was sitting was not helping.

"You still didn't answer my question," she didn't move. "Where is my bag?"

"I'll have a servant bring it." He walked to the edge of the bed, reached out, and held the top of the robe closed until she brought her own hand up to hold it for herself.

"The man in the portrait with you, is that your father?" she asked, he tone softening significantly.

"You seem to know so much about this world, you should know, shouldn't you?" he was not going out of his way to be friendly.

"I've only seen pictures of him in his true form... You don't look much like him, but... you have his eyes," she said, gazing into those golden orbs.

"Yes, I look more like my mother, or so I'm told," he didn't elaborate. Sesshoumaru realized that she was trying to make small talk but couldn't see the reason behind it. So, at the risk of being to forward, he asked what was up. "You have something on your mind."

"Nothing escapes you," she tried to use her sarcasm to distract him, even though she knew he would just brush it off and continue to press her. "This is your home... in the Western Lands, isn't it? Why am I here?"

"I will answer that when you tell me why you were calling my name in your sleep," he countered.

"Fine... where are my clothes?" she wasn't sure how to answer his question other than, 'It was a nightmare, and you were in it.' Which would sound lame.

"Being washed." Two could play at this game. "That is one of my robes you are wearing. I don't exactly keep women's clothes."

Angel was saved from attempting to continue the conversation by a child's high-pitched squeal of excitement. "Sesshoumaru-sama! Is that the lady from yesterday?" Rin ran into the room and immediately jumped up onto the bed and into Angel's lap. "Is she going to be Rin's new mother?"

"Oh, I don't think so, Rin-chan," Angel said, patting her head and eyeing Sesshoumaru. "But I will be your friend for as long as I'm here."

"Really?" Rin asked, still as excitable as ever. "That's good, because Jaken isn't very fun to play with."

"Rin," Sesshoumaru cut in. "I believe it is your breakfast time. Go downstairs before it gets cold."

"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!" She did not even question him as she promptly got up and ran back out of the room.

"You must be hungry as well. I assume that, because you are a youkai, you do not eat human food, therefore you will be dining with me." It was not a request, not that Angel minded. Maybe she could get some proper answers. She was about to ask about her clothes, but he continued. "I am having a kimono made for you to wear."

"What? Why?" She was shocked. That he answered her question before she asked, and also by the fact that he was having a kimono made for her.

"You clothes are inappropriate." Those words left her a bit deflated, but she still had the fact that he was having the kimono made for her, regardless of the reason.

"Arigato." Her voice was just a notch lower. She didn't know why; she hadn't even realized until she had spoken the word.

"Hm?" Sesshoumaru arched one delicate eyebrow.

"Nothing," she said quickly. "I was just wondering what would happen to it when I went home."

"You could take it with you, I suppose. Or leave it for Rin to grow into," he returned to nonchalance to cover what he prayed was not a moment of concern. "It should be ready soon enough for you to change into before breakfast."

"If I tell you why I called your name, will you tell me why you brought me here?" She couldn't take it any longer. The dancing around the topic, the lame conversations about breakfast, it was driving her mad.

"That is what I said, so yes, I will," he stated calmly, though the sudden jump backward in subject surprised him slightly.

"I was having a dream that turned into a nightmare," she said, the memories of it returning to her, and she unconsciously touched her lips. "Completely unrealistic, ungrounded fears. But anyway, at the end Naraku was about strike a deathblow to... you..." The last word was barely audible, but Sesshoumaru's sensitive ears caught it.

"You say the fears are unrealistic. Is it because, to you, I am not real?" He could not help asking.

"No, of course not. What I meant by that was I don't think Naraku is nearly strong enough to even come close to being able to defeat you." She could practically see his ego growing and feeding off the words of praise.

"That is true," he said, nodding. The man has an ego bigger than his demon form. 'If my dying was a nightmare to her, and she said that I am real to her instead of a fictional character in a story, does this mean she has feelings for me? Don't be ridiculous! It does not matter what she feels. As soon as she is healed, we will be trying to find a way for her to return to her home. That's right, she will be gone... so even if I am beginning to... beginning to what! Do not go there. I will not put myself through this...' He continued his mental tirade with his usual bored expression, his eyes gazing out the window and occasionally glancing at Angel to find that she too was looking out the window with a somewhat far away look in her eyes.

Their silence was interrupted by a knock on the door. It was a servant coming to let Sesshoumaru know that Angel's kimono was finished, and they were awaiting his order to bring it up, which he gave immediately.

"Your kimono will be up in a moment," he informed her.

"What about my bag?" she reminded him.

"That as well. Everything is being taken care of," Sesshoumaru assured her. A minute or so later the kimono was brought in. "You can change behind that screen." He gestured to a freestanding divider next to the bed.

She got up, still holding the top of the robe closed, got the kimono, and went behind the curtain to change. A few moments later, she emerged. It was a perfect fit. The kimono was dark green with white in the same places Sesshoumaru's had red, and mini dragons where his had the flower-hexagon pattern. The obi was pale blue with swirling, royal blue designs. The strange part was that the kimono did not go all the way around from front to back. It did cover, but it shifted much easier when she moved, allowing for much better range of motion.

Sesshoumaru's breath caught in his throat for a fraction, but he managed to avoid dropping his jaw. She walked to him, laying the sleeping robe on the bed.

"You know," she said. "You're cute when you're shocked." She winked. Yes, she actually winked. "Now, you promised to tell me why you brought me here."

"I saw you sleeping in virtually nothing, in the rain. You looked as if you should have taken me up on my earlier offer," he paused.

"So you took it upon yourself to rectify the situation? Did you consider that maybe I didn't want to be helped?" she fumed at his forwardness. 'I really did want to go with him, but I resisted for the sake of balance, and I wound up here anyway!'

"There were also a few saimyosho nearby," he finished.

"Oh... what! Why didn't I sense them? Very strange..."

"I could not sense them either. Naraku is very tricky, irritatingly so. It's not surprising that neither of us were able to detect their presence." Sesshoumaru made what appeared to be and attempt to comfort her. He placed his hand, stiff though the action was, on her shoulder. She tensed instinctively but relaxed at the warmth radiating from his hand.

"Thank you, Sesshoumaru," she said softly. She closed her eyes for a moment to try to read his feelings, to help decide whether to give into the strange urgency she felt.

For a moment, Sesshoumaru thought she had fallen, tripped or perhaps collapsed. She seemed to have just fallen forward, into him, but then he realized... her arms were around him, and her face was buried in his, presently armor-less chest. His own arm, having been on her shoulder, slid down her back so that he too was embracing her. He never realized exactly how tall she really was; she came just to his shoulders, fairly tall for a female. He tilted his head forward and rested his cheek on her head, breathing in her scent. She smelled of honeysuckle on an ocean breeze. Then a strange scent of salt hit him and a sound like a choked sob. The smell reminded him of when Rin had nightmares, only this lacked the scent of fear. Another strangled cry reached his ears. Then it hit him. She was crying! He had really no clue as to how to respond, so he merely tightened his arms around her. It seemed to have the desired affect. She quieted and gave him a final squeeze before stepping and going to dig into her bag, probably looking for something to wipe her eyes with, not wanting to use her new kimono. After a moment or so of what seemed like futile searching, Sesshoumaru handed her a piece of fabric, and she took it, wordlessly thanking him.

"I feel like such a silly child," she said when she had recovered.

"Why were you crying?" he could not help himself.

"I, um... it was nothing..." she looked away. "Like I said, I feel like a silly child for doing it. I never cry, even when I'm alone. I guess there's a crack in the wall I built to keep my emotions in check..."

"If you are certain... Then I believe the food is ready, are you?" He stood near the door, waiting for her to follow him out. She did, placing the bit of cloth on the bed.


	5. 5

Disclaimer: I doughnut own Inuyasha... I only own a computer.. but I go to a smart people school, so think with enough hacking, I could own Inuyasha... if I did, I think it would become "Sesshoumaru, a Feudal Prince" Much catchier...

Recap: Angel woke up at Sesshoumaru's home. They had some fun conversations. It was a boring chapter... (this sounds like the cards on Adult Swim)

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"Ah, sugoi," Angel said, complimenting the food. "This is really good."

"Yes, it is one of my favorites," Sesshoumaru replied. Both sat, cross-legged on silk pillows at the small breakfast table, eating across from each other.

"I'm sorry. I'm not very good at small talk. I never attempt to pursue pointless fields," she explained.

"I agree. Why don't we discuss matter of greater importance?" he suggested. "Such as how long are you planning to stay, and what are you planning on doing in the mean time?"

"I'm only staying until I can find a way to get where I belong. As for what I'm planning on doing, I suppose I would be devoting most of my energy to finding a way to either create or find a portal back to my own world..." For a moment, her thoughts traveled back to the words Naraku had spoken in her dream. 'You are already back in your own world.'

"After we finish eating, I will show you my library. It has various tomes on mystical subjects. I think you will be able to find what you are looking for," he offered.

"You are being really generous, Sesshoumaru," she said sounding thankful, but then her tone became very suspicious. "What's the catch?"

"Do I look like Naraku? I have my own reasons," he shut off the subject. There was a period of silence following. During this time, Sesshoumaru noticed that, despite her high praise of the food, she didn't seem to be eating much. By the time he finished his, hers was not even half gone. "Are you finished?"

"Oh," she came out from inside her head. "Yes. It is very good, but can't really eat right now..." She placed a hand over her stomach, reminding him of her wound. "This isn't healing as fast as it should. It's very aggravating."

"I know the feeling..." he said, remembering many times after harsh battles (which he won, of course) wounds that took their sweet time healing. He was suppressing all memories to do with Inuyasha. "Well, if you are finished eating, I will show you the library."

"That sounds good to me, but there is something I've been meaning to ask you," she told him as they both got up and left the room together.

"What is it?"

"Well, when I fell asleep in the forest, I was a little muddy," she said, using a hand gesture to emphasize 'little'.

"That's an understatement," he scoffed.

"Oh, as if you're always impeccably clean," she scoffed right back. "Anyway, when I woke up, I was cleaned up..."

"And you were wondering who cleaned you?" Sesshoumaru ventured. "It was not I that cleaned you."

"Well, that was part of it. But there are also two other parts to the question. How long was I asleep? And how was I moved around and even bathed without being woken up? Normally, stress causes me to be a very light sleeper," Angel said. "Especially when I am injured."

"I can answer the first question," he informed her. "You slept through the night, to about an hour past dawn. As for why you did not wake up, I cannot be sure. Perhaps some herbs in the bathwater helped calm you, but as for before that, I cannot even venture a guess."

"Maybe... I suppose that could be some of it. I do feel less pressure around my spine... My classmates don't know how lucky that are to have me," she managed a small smile. She continued before he even asked what she meant, "I give them massages when we have big exams or projects coming up, when we are all under stress. But unfortunately, none of them can give a decent stress relieving anything."

"Class-mates?" Sesshoumaru asked, not understand that word, but getting the rest of what she said.

"No, not mate, in the sense that you understand it. My peers, people I got to school and learn with," she explained to him.

"I understand the majority of what you said, but you are from another world, another time, of course things are different," he said, trying to get her to stop talking. He found it discouraging that there were things this woman knew about that he had no comprehension of, probably a great many things. "We have arrived at my library." He was blessed to find her silent, caught in awe with her mouth agape for a good number of seconds before recovering herself.

"Oh my, this is enormous," she said quietly.

"This is my personal and family collection," he told her. "Passed down and added to through generations. If you need to find something, it is probably here."

"How will I ever know where to look?" The room really was enormous. Angel had a sneaking suspicion that, without the presence of the books, the room could hold Sesshoumaru's father fully transformed. "Is there a form of organization?"

"Only by year of collection, I believe," he sighed. "And even that has gotten a bit mixed up over time. But I know my father had a number of books on portals, and they would be in a more recent section."

"Thank you, Sesshoumaru," she bowed, surprising him. "I don't know how I can repay you for everything you've done, sharing your home, your food, this magnificent library..."

For some odd reason, Sesshoumaru found that it felt somehow wrong for her to so submissive. Probably just because he was used to seeing her be defiant and standoffish. He decided to try a little experiment... on her temper.

"You could begin by leaving as soon as you find what you are looking for," he said, sounding bored as per usual.

"That's what I was planning on doing anyway," Angel huffed. "Besides, I declined your original offer. I was doing just fine on my own."

"Really? I don't think I'd like to see what you deem as a bad situation... You were, after all, being successfully stalked by Naraku," he, oh so kindly, reminded her.

"Tetsusaiga..." She knew it probably wasn't the smartest move, a sharp kick in the pride, but her own pride refused to let her back off of the challenge, no matter how true his statements.

"I don't need it anymore, now that I have Toukijin," he informed her.

"Really you seemed pretty damn thankful when I gave it to you yesterday-"

"But did I actually thank you?"

"Inuyasha showed up."

"I dropped the Tetsusaiga."

"To catch me. But if you really don't want the Tetsusaiga anymore, then this is what I'd call an ironic situation."

"What do you mean? (I do still want to kill my brother by the way)."

"Now that you can finally hold it without being burned by the barrier, you don't want it. If that truly is the case. But you seem to be nearly as stubborn as I am, so you probably aren't as willing to give up your desire to get the Tetsusaiga as you are trying to make it seem," she paused but then continued, ignoring his gesture showing that he was about to speak. "I know that you do have a sword more powerful than it now, but you still want to prove that you are the rightful master of the Tetsusaiga, and that it was a momentary lapse in judgment that made your father leave it to Inuyasha."

"Stop trying to psychoanalyze me, woman!" he ordered, getting a slightly fierce tone in his voice. Then, he realized that the tables had been turned on him. He disliked it immensely. He had purposely sparked her temper to start an argument about her, but instead she made it about him and the Tetsusaiga, causing his control slip just a fraction but enough to lose focus of his own motives for a moment. He regained his composure and said in his driest, most bored voice, "The more recent books are over there." He pointed to stacks to the left of the door.

"Party pooper..." she grumped as she stalked off to the cases. She pulled out the first book she touched and sat in a chair nearby. Sesshoumaru did the same, sitting a good distance away (though still within book-throwing distance). Each sat and read quietly for a time until Angel jumped out of her seat as if she had been pricked and crossed over to Sesshoumaru. "Sesshoumaru, could you take a look at this? I'm sure I must have read it wrong..."

"Samuishi, second son of the Lord of the Southern Lands, and his daughter mysteriously disappeared after he claimed to have discovered a new way of creating portal to other worlds. Both are assumed to have been killed during a raid on their home. The body of his mate was... What is this to us? The Lord refused to give his son's research to anyone," Sesshoumaru commented.

"Samuishi is my father's name, and that portrait there," she pointed to the next page at what seemed to be an oil painting instead of block printing. "That's a picture of my father. Normally, I'd assume he was an ancestor, but I'm not from this world. When exactly did you get this?"

"This is one of the books I received more recently. Less than twenty years ago," he told her.

"My father told me he came from another world... Do you know exactly how many years ago this book was written?"

"Eighteen, I believe. Do you really think that he is your father?"

"I think it's very possible. I'm eighteen... This can't be possible." Her nightmare flashed through her mind once more. Why was Naraku telling her those things when she hadn't even known? Could it have been another premonition, she hadn't had one in a long time. She hoped that it wasn't a premonition, because that might mean the end of the dream...

"Is there something that you failed to mention? Whatever it is, it may help us find what we are looking for," Sesshoumaru asked, offering her a chance.

"Well, yes... in the dream that I had, Naraku said some things. I put it off as dreamworld nonsense, but now it seems like they may hold some truth..."

"What did he say?" he pressed.

"That this is my world, or rather that I am in my world, same thing..."

"Perhaps not. I believe I have a book somewhere that says something about using dreams as passageways to other worlds..."

"Perhaps... but then how would you explain this picture of my father? What if what Naraku said was the truth?"

"When has Naraku ever told the truth? He bends people to his will with lies and deceit, pitting them against each other using hate, doing whatever it takes to get what he wants," he listed off.

"I can't argue with the truth. Now, can I?" she quipped. "But I still can't help but wonder. Do you think Naraku would tell the truth if it was in his best interest, helped him get what he wanted?"

"There is always the possibility..." he mused. "But if he did, it would be an extremely warped and twisted version of the truth. Is there anything else? I don't think it would irk you so much if it were only this."

"Yes, there is one more thing, but I'd rather not say it just yet. I don't think it will matter for a portal," she nearly begged.

"For now, but I will hold you to your word," he promised.

"Thank you. And now, I think it's time I had a little chat with my father..."


	6. 6

Disclaimer: Now, not only don't I own Inuyasha, but I ran out of doughnuts too. Now I will have to write without the sugar... Wait, I still have Pepsi. Ok, I can continue.

"Talk to your father? How do you plan to do that?" Sesshoumaru asked curiously.

"Through a cross between magic and technology," she said as she reached into her bag, which was still practically fused to her shoulder. She pulled out what looked like a small silver rectangle. "It's something we use in my time to communicate with someone over vast distances as if they were standing right here. Normally this would only work in my world, but there is a spell cast on mine to allow it to work anywhere."

She opened the rectangle and pressed a spot until the device began making odd noises, then she held it to the side of her head.

(Sa her father; An Angel)

Sa: Moshi Moshi.

An: Papa, I think you and I need to talk...

Sa: Yes we do. Where you last night?

An: That's what we need to talk about... I'm in the Sengoku Jidai. Is there something that you failed to mention, you know, for the past eighteen years!

Sa: What have I told you about fooling with magic?

An: I wasn't fooling with magic! I was pulled here by a youkai. Maybe you know of him, goes by the name Naraku.

Sa: Naraku? That's the youkai that killed your mother and nearly killed you when you were a baby.

An: What! Well at least that explains a bit. And you wonder why I never talk to you anymore... I must get it from you...

Sa: I want you to come home right now, do you understand me?

An: What's that? I can't hear you, you're breaking up...

She rubbed her thumb over the mouthpiece while she said her last sentence, then she disconnected the call and turned the phone off.

"Nice talking to you too, bastard..." Angel mumbled as she put the phone in her bag. She looked up at Sesshoumaru and continued speaking. "My father has just confirmed that he has been lying to me my entire life."

"Would you like to postpone your search for a portal, for the moment at least?" he offered.

"I would love to... Why are you being so generous? You never answered the last time I asked," she was beginning to get suspicious of his motives again.

"You kept pieces of your explanation to yourself, I am entitled to the same," he huffed. "All you need to know for now is that you are safe here."

"That is a very good thing to know," she half-grinned. "Smell anything interesting?" she asked when she noticed Sesshoumaru sniffing the air.

"Yes, blood, your blood. You are bleeding," he informed her, standing and walking up to her to attempt to determine from where she was bleeding.

"I am? That's so strange. I never even noticed... not even the scent of my own blood. What the hell is going on?" She looked herself over, and, other than a small paper cut, could find no sign of the blood. "Maybe it was just the paper cut..."

"No, it smells like quite a bit more." He gently took hold of her damaged arm and sniffed at it. "This smells old..." He sniffed up her arm and traveled down her front, and, kneeling in front of her, he buried his nose in her abdomen.

"What are you doing?" she hissed. "Get up."

He seemed to realize his position and stood, composing himself. "That is where the scent is strongest. The wounds seem to have reopened."

"What? But that has never happened!" she said, shocked.

"What's more, I believe I know why you did not recognize the scent of your own blood," he continued. "I could detect lingering traces of Naraku's poison." He watched as she unconsciously brought one hand to her belly. "The poison should dissipate on its own, but if the bleeding continues..."

"Right... " She still seemed a bit shocked, probably over the fact that Naraku was, in an abstract way, inside her.

"I'll bring you upstairs to have the bandages changed and see just how bad it is," he told her.

"Right..."

Sesshoumaru led her out of the library and up to her room where he sat her on the bed. At that point, he was stuck. He did not want to entrust this duty to a servant, nor was he sure whether he should do it himself. He knew how to bandage, that was not an issue. The only problem was, if she was in a state of shock, it would mean that he, Sesshoumaru, would have to undress her. Thankfully, before he had to come up with a solution, Angel's eyes came back into focus.

"What?..." she asked, almost groggily.

"I need to re-bandage your wound, remove your top," he ordered. He did not expect her to comply willing and was slightly amazed when she untied her obi and pulled her arms out of the sleeves. She was wearing that same strange garment he found her in, but this one seemed slightly different.

"I'm not taking off my bra, this is all the skin you are getting," she said firmly.

"This is fine," he told her. He proceeded to gently untie and unwind the bandage from around her middle. The wound looked like a deep gash, not too bad. It looked like any other battle wound, only fresh, not a day old (especially for a demon). The old bandages were nearly soaked through, and he suspected the new ones would be soon, as well.

"This really isn't my day, is it?" she said leaning back to rest some of her weight on her hands.

"It doesn't seem to be turning out that way..." Sesshoumaru responded as he stood to get fresh bandages and some water to clean the wound with. He stepped into the connected washroom, leaving the door open.

Suddenly, Angel felt the pain from the wound increase greatly. When Sesshoumaru returned, he found her clutching at her belly with bloodstained hands, her shoulders hunched over, and her face contorted in a silent cry of pain. He could actually see the flow of blood increasing. Not wasting any time, he rushed to her, and pried her hands away from her stomach so he could press the cloth to it. He pulled her into his lap, rocking her gently.

This was the only memory he had of his own mother. Whenever he was hurt when he was a very young child, she would comfort him in this manner, making small hushing noises if he was crying. He could not remember her face, but he remembered this. It was what he did for Rin when she came to him in the middle of the night, crying over a nightmare, or when she was hurt. Truly, it was the only way he knew how to give comfort, the only way he'd been taught.

When he looked down at her, she had fallen asleep, probably unconscious from the blood loss. Honestly, this woman made him wonder. The bleeding seemed to have slowed down, and when he lifted the cloth, it looked like it had stopped altogether. He began to wonder if the reopening of the wound and increased blood flow had anything to do with Naraku's poison. Looking at her, he noticed something odd. There were bruise marks on her neck, as if someone had trued to strangle her. It didn't look like something from a tentacle. It looked more like it came from a pair of hands. Sesshoumaru recalled her mentioning Naraku in her dream, and how real she said it seemed. Perhaps it had been more than just a dream.

Meanwhile, Angel had entered another strange dream.

She was cradled in someone's lap, while the person stroked her hair. Her eyes refused to open all the way, so everything was blurred, darkened, and partial. She felt silk against her cheek and unyielding muscle behind the silk. Feeling no baboon hair, she felt it was safe to assume it wasn't Naraku. That left only one person in her mind: Sesshoumaru. Knowing this, she allowed herself to relax into the strong embrace.

"I'm glad to know you can find comfort in me," the voice did not belong to Sesshoumaru.

Angel's eyes widened as she tried to struggle and push away from him, but she couldn't. She couldn't move at all.

"Having trouble?" he asked innocently. "You can't get away from me, I'm in your blood."

"Bastard, what the fuck is going on!" she demanded with as much force as the restriction would allow.

"You are truly mine. I could kill you with a thought if I so desired," he told her, his mouth so close to her ear, she could feel his hot breath.

"How does that make me yours?" she asked. "You obviously don't know much about modern girls. We don't take kindly to being treated like property. I don't belong to anyone."

"Really? We'll see about that." In an instant, every inch of Angel's body was screaming pure agony. She felt as if she were being torn part from the inside. Like every blood vessel, vein, and artery in her body was about to explode.


	7. 7

You've been very patient since the last chapter. Though, for all I know, it may have been 3 seconds since you finished it.

Sesshoumaru watched in mild fascination as, while Angel slept, the wound on her stomach completely healed, leaving only a fresh, pink scar. As soon as the wound closed, her body seized. Her muscles were tense and the grimace of pain returned to her face. He gently shook her, trying to wake her without causing more pain. When it didn't work, he simply picked up the bowl of water on the floor and dumped it over her head.

She woke instantly, coughing and sputtering, but she did not seem to be in physical pain any longer. Though she did seem a bit irate. But after realizing she was actually awake, the first thing she did was feel the newly formed scar across her midriff.

"What the hell?"

"You healed while you slept," he said simply.

"Right... Why am I in your lap?" She looked up at him questioningly.

"It seemed like the best thing to do," he answered her, and without even breaking pace, he stood while lifting her and placing her on the bed once again.

'Okay,' she thought. 'If he's going to steer away from that subject, let's move on to another one.'

"So, is there somewhere I can wash all this blood off?" she asked, now not wanting to pull her top back up for fear of staining it.

"Yes, there is an indoor hot spring downstairs. I'll accompany you," he stated, leaving no room for argument. "I need to bathe as well," he added as an explanation.

When they reached the spring, there were already bathing things there. As Sesshoumaru began disrobing, Angel blushed a deep crimson and turned around but busied herself with disrobing herself to make the action inconspicuous.

Angel stepped into the water, holding a towel to her front, only after she heard the splash signifying that Sesshoumaru was already in. They were separated by a few feet of water. Angel could smell the herbs in the water, relaxing and calming herbs. She could feel the stress and tensions ebbing away. She let out a moan of contentment as she sank in.

"Enjoying yourself," Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. "I don't get to spend nearly as much time relaxing in here as I should." He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall. They were both sitting on a ledge, letting themselves completely relax in each other's company for the first time.

"That's gotta suck," she said quietly, still reveling in the relaxation.

"Yes, and unfortunately the same is to be said for the garden," he sighed.

"Garden?" Sesshoumaru had obviously peaked her interest.

"Of course," he told her. "My home would not be complete without one. I used to..." Then, their moment of connection was gone. He closed himself back up.

"You used to what?" she pressed.

"Nothing. Finish cleaning yourself, then get out and meet me back in the library," he said, ending the conversation. He got out, wrapped a towel around himself, gathered his clothes, and stalked out of the room.

"Puzzles, puzzles, puzzles, he is very puzzling," she muttered to herself as she reached for the soap and washcloth. She scrubbed at the fresh scar while unconsciously humming the tune to Every Heart, until the scent of blood, now in the water and still a bit on her, reached her nose. "Eww, Naraku blood. How could I have missed that? Gross, gross, gross..." She scrubbed away again, trying to ignore the scent, which was blessedly fading, and humming to herself again. This time she was humming My Will, again unconscious that she was doing so.

"What are you humming?"

"Kya-!" Angel plunged into the water up to her neck, until she realized that it was a little girl's voice asking the question. She rose a few inches out of the water to see a pair of large brown eyes peering at her from under short brown bangs on a smiling face. "Oh, hello, Rin-chan. Sorry I yelled, you surprised me."

"Really? Rin never surprised anyone before, except for Jaken," she frowned slightly. "He always yelled at me after. But then Sesshoumaru-sama usually stepped on him." The smile reappeared.

"Well, you sure surprised me, and I'm not going to yell at you," she said, giving Rin a smile very close to genuine. She stood up, out of the water, the towel securely in front of her walked over to where her things lay. "Rin could you turn around a moment while I dry off and get my clothes on?"

"Sure," Rin piped and wheeled around to face away as Angel did exactly what she said she would. She put the kimono back on, as it had not been dirtied and wrapped her hair in a towel.

"Alright, you can face me again," she told Rin when she'd finished.

"What were you humming before?" Rin asked again. She had an unexpectedly good short-term memory for and eight-year-old.

"I was humming? What did it sound like?" She truly hadn't realized. When Rin hummed a few bars, she recognized the song. "It's just a song I like. It's called My Will."

"Will you sing it to Rin?" she pleaded.

"Alright... How about in the garden? Where is that?" Angel had wanted to visit it ever since Sesshoumaru had mentioned it... less than an hour ago.

"Ooh, yes. Rin loves the garden," she squealed. "Rin will show you where it is." Rin led Angel outside, to the garden. It was beautiful, with nearly every flower one could possibly imagine. At least 20 different kinds of roses, maybe 100 different species of orchid, lilac, lavender, and hundreds of others filled the vast space.

"Oh, my... It's gorgeous," Angel was in awe of the splendor. For a moment, she shocked that Sesshoumaru had created this, but then she remembered that he had been an almost completely different person in his home. The lush, green grass cushioned her bare feet as they walked to a small clearing surrounded by bushes of honeysuckle. They sat on the stone bench; Rin climbed promptly into Angel's lap. Angel popped a few blossoms off from the bush behind them, using the stamen and pistol to push the sweet nectar out of the bottom, and licked it away.

"Okay, you said that you would tell Rin what you were singing," Rin reminded her.

"Wow, you've got a pretty long attention span for someone so young. Added to your good memory," she commented. "You'd do pretty well where I'm from."

"Thanks," Rin smiled brightly. "Would please sing me the song now?"

"Alright...

Sotto mezameru

Hakanai omoi zutto donna toki demo negau yo

Anata ni todoku you ni to...

"Ato sukoshi" to iu kyori ha fumidasenakute

Itsumo me no mae wa tozasareteita no

Aitai aenai hibi o kasaneru tabi ni

Tsuyoi tokimeki wa kinasa ni naru yo

Moshimo "eien" to iu mono ga aru nara

Toumawari shite demo shinjitemitai

"Bukiyou dakara kizu tsuku koto mo aru" to

Wakattemo tomaranai mou darenimo makenai

Anata no koto o omou soredakede namida ga ima afuredashitekuru yo

Hakanai omoi zutto donna toki demo negau yo

Anata ni todoku you ni to...

Tsuyogaru koto dake shirisugiteita watashi

Dakedo ano toki kara mayoi wa kieta yo

Misetai to omou mono ga kitto atte kikasetai kotoba mo takusan aru

Egao naki kao mo zenbu mite hoshikute

Matteiru watashi wa yamete "chansu" o tsukamu yo

Anata no koto o omou soredakede kokoro ga tsuyoku nareru ki ga suru yo

Hakanai omoi zutto donna toki demo negau yo

Anata ni todoku you ni to...

Anata no koto o omou soredakede namida ga ima afuredashitekuru yo

Tookute koe ga todokanai dakedo itsuka wa kanarazu todoku you ni

Shinjite la la la la la la

Shinjite la la la la la la

Shinjite la la la la la la," her voice had a lower pitch that gave the song a soft lilt to it.

Soft clapping made her jump slightly. "I haven't heard singing like that in a long time," Sesshoumaru said, walking along the path to them. Angel had failed to notice his approach yet again.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin squealed happily. "Can Angel-sama stay for a long time, pleeease? Rin really likes her."

"I'm staying only as long as I have to," Angel answered, saving Sesshoumaru from having to do so.

"Yes, and we are not sure how long or short that will be, yet," Sesshoumaru finished.

Rin pouted for just a moment before resuming her grin. "But Rin can play with her as long as she's here, right?"

"As long as you do not bother her," Sesshoumaru reassured her. "But run along for now."

"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she said before doing exactly as she was told and running off to find another way to amuse herself.

Angel did not even try to hide the smile playing at her lips. "What is so funny?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"You," she gave her famous half-grin. "Don't worry. Not funny 'ha-ha,' funny 'Kawaii.'"

"Kawaii?" he only seemed a little bit horrified. To think that he, Lord Sesshoumaru, Ruler of the Western Lands, was being called 'Kawaii.'

"She looks up to you as sort of a father-figure," she said explaining what she meant. "You and I both know what kind of effect a father can have on a person's life. You do a pretty good job for someone so... inexperienced in that department. I mean it as a complement. But do you want some advice?"

"Do I have a choice?" he said.

"Of course, but saying yes is the better choice," she smirked.

"Fine, then," he gave in.

"Rin doesn't get to see people very often, right? So, she's going to need a female role model. I know you probably got the whole 'You need to find a proper mate' speech from your father a hundred times, but I'm going to put a new spin on it. When you do pick a mate, you should probably pick someone that will accept the fact that this girl lives with you, or you'd better be willing to give Rin up. You know better than anyone how most youkai feel about humans. But Rin is going to need a female, especially when she gets older, about age 10 or 11 to about 19 or maybe today about 16. It depends on when you are going to let her get married."

"Married! She's far to young to think about that," he said quickly.

"Ah, paternal instincts," she chuckled. "Kawaii."

Song translation!

Quietly awakening...

I always, always wish

that these fleeting thoughts

would reach you...

Unable to move forward across "just a little more" distance

The way I see before me is always blocked

Every time the days I want to see you but can't pile up,

My strong heartbeat turns into heartbreak.

If there is such a thing as "eternity,"

I want to believe, even if I have to take the long way.

Although I know that I've been hurt before because I'm clumsy

I won't stop; I won't give in to anyone.

I think of you

and that alone is enough

to make the tears start to flow now

I always, always wish

that these fleeting thoughts

would reach you...

I've known all too well about pretending to be strong.

But since then, my doubts have vanished.

There's definitely things I want to show you

And so many words I want to hear

I want to see all sides of you, when you laugh and cry

So I'll stop waiting

and seize my "chance."

I think of you,

and I feel like that alone is enough

to make my heart grow stronger.

I always, always wish

that these fleeting thoughts

would reach you...

I think of you

and that alone is enough

to make the tears start to flow now

My distant voice can't reach you now, but so that someday

it definitely will...

Believe. la la la la la la...

Believe. la la la la la la...

Believe. la la la la la la...


	8. 8

"There is something I need to speak with you about," Sesshoumaru said, closing the topic of his cuteness.

"Fire away," she responded, having a very difficult time resisting adding 'cutie pie.'

"I have realized that the times that you have been attacked, probably because that is when your guard is lowest, was when you were sleeping. Therefore, tonight I have arranged for a guard to stand watch outside your room tonight," he told her.

"And just what is a guard outside my room supposed to do?" she questioned.

"He is under strict order to enter if, and only if, he senses anything amuck," he said, attempting to reason with her.

"I can take care of myself," she said defiantly. "I would actually feel safer without a guard standing outside my room trying to sense what's goin on inside."

"Oh, yes. That explains the marks on your neck and what happened upstairs," he said perfecting his own sarcasm. "You will have the guard." He closed the subject and stalked off yet again.

They avoided each other the rest of the afternoon, only spending time together during lunch and dinner where neither spoke much. Rin seemed to know to keep her distance. Angel spent most of the rest of the day either in her room or bringing books out to the garden to read. Both she and Sesshoumaru wondered why he did not just throw her out. The time Angel spent in her room, she used to try to figure out a way to get rid of the guard. She thought it was probably not such a good idea to kill him, so she had to find another way. Ironically, it was in the garden that she found it.

Around 11 o'clock, the guard, a large inu youkai, apparently from the royal guard, appeared outside her door. Angel wasn't sure whether to be flattered that Sesshoumaru thought her worthy of a member or the royal guard, or insulted that he thought she need to be kept under such strict surveillance. She picked up the two herbs from her bed and put them by the door, knowing that his sensitive nose would pick up the scents. She said the spell she'd found and watched for the effect. It came almost instantly. His jaw slackened slightly, as did the rest of his rigid frame, and his cool, amber eyes glazed over.

The spell she'd found seemed ancient but powerful, as most ancient things tend to be. Unfortunately, it only worked once on a person. Once they were under the effects, the person would obey any command given by the caster of the spell. Angel had worded the command very carefully.

"Go to your sleeping quarters to sleep for the rest of the night because you've forgotten tonight's duties, but you know any trouble you get into tomorrow for forgetting and sleeping will be my fault." She preyed it would work as a single order. She wasn't planning on doing anything that night besides try to get a good night's sleep, but she hated feeling like a prisoner or child that needed to be watched and kept out of trouble.

Later that night, probably around three o'clock, she was still awake. Because of this, she was able to hear the soft whimper at her door. She padded over, softly, and slid open the door to reveal a crying Rin.

"Oh, Rin-chan, what the matter? It's very late," Angel said, taking the child into her arms and carrying her over to the bed.

"R-Rin had a bad d-dream," she choked out between sobs.

"Do you want to tell me what it was about?" Angel asked gently.

"The wolves," she said almost inaudibly.

"Oh, Rin-chan." She rocked her in her lap, kissing the top of her head, trying to comfort her. "Well, why did you come to me instead of Sesshoumaru?"

"Sesshoumaru-sama is having a bad dream, too," Rin told her. She seemed to have calmed down a bit.

"Really? What do you usually do if you have a nightmare but Sesshoumaru is having one as well?"

"Rin has never seen Sesshoumaru-sama have a bad dream before," she said.

"Well, Rin, you are welcome to sleep here tonight," Angel offered.

"No, it's ok. Rin feels better now. Arigato," she smiled happily. "Rin can go back to Rin's own room now."

"That's good that you are feeling better," Angel said, smiling gently. When Rin was gone, she said to herself," Now I can go see what's going on with Sesshoumaru."

When she walked into the room, She noticed something very important. Something that almost slipped her mind when she looked around. The room was lit by the glow from the fireplace, which cast gold hues all about. The cathedral ceiling made the already enormous room seem even bigger. The four chairs around the fire seemed unused with the exception of one. The portrait over the mantle reminded her of the one in her room, except the occupants were older. Sesshoumaru looked closer to the age he was now, and his father looked just a touch older. The far wall was a bookcase, and the wall above Sesshoumaru's bed held another portrait, a very unique one. It was of him alone, in his full form howling at a full moon. It took her a moment to realize that there were no windows... until she looked up. The ceiling was one big skylight.

Once she had finished looking the room over, her mind returned to her mission. She remembered what she had noticed when she first walked in. She couldn't smell any fear. She thought she would've at least smelled a bit if Sesshoumaru were having a nightmare. Angel looked at him, sleeping on his bed, which was easily the size of four western king-size beds put together. His perfect face was set in a frown. Maybe it was just what Rin had said, a bad dream, an unpleasant dream. She could sense a lot of anxiety though. When she walked closer, she could see that it was quite like watching a dog sleep. His tail was twitching just a bit. Under the cover, it could be seen that the same was to be said for his arms and legs. She reached the end of the bed and...

Sesshoumaru despised being lectured by his father. He was a child; he should not have to be responsible for Inuyasha. The whelp had run off and gotten himself stuck in a thorn bush. Sesshoumaru had been ordered by his father to keep a close eye on the badly scratched, sleeping half-breed while he spoke to the human that had mothered it. He looked disdainfully down at Inuyasha only to find that it was not Inuyasha. It was Rin, bitten, scratched, torn, and bloodied. Her glassy, staring eyes made it evident that she was dead. He reached for the Tenseiga even though he couldn't see the messengers from the underworld. The sword was not at his belt. It was lying on the ground beside him, too heavy for his child arms to lift. Panic began to rise in his throat. He could not save her this time. Suddenly, he was pushed aside by his father. No... It was him, the adult him. But how? The older him picked up the sword easily and swung it through the air, destroying the messengers that were now invisible to him. He turned and walked away, discouraged and confused.

He walked into an open field. It seemed perfect, sunny, flowers blooming; it helped him clear his head. After a moment, he realized he was not alone in the field.

Angel sensed panic and watched Sesshoumaru's face carefully. His eyes squeezed shut further, his frown deepened, his chin lifted, and his back arched slightly as if he were lifting something very heavy. Before she realized what she was doing, Angel had climbed onto the bed and was cradling Sesshoumaru's head against her chest. In the back of her mind, she remembered that the sound of a heartbeat, especially in sleep, reminds a person of the womb and calms him. She had only heard that in reference to infants, but it seemed to be working just fine for Sesshoumaru. She could feel his heartbeat against her stomach, and the feeling and sound of that, alongside his now steady breathing, lulled her to sleep in under a minute. As she slept, she dreamed, but the dream was not completely her own.

Sesshoumaru saw a girl across the field. She looked maybe Rin's age; then again, he looked Rin's age. The girl had blue hair and wore a kimono of the same blue and green. This seemed very familiar to him, but he could not place it. He had only been looking at her profile, so when she turned and looked at him, it hit him. She was Angel.

Angel found herself in a sunny field at the edge of a forest. Looking down, the ground seemed a bit too close. It took her only a moment to realize she was no longer 18 but eight. She saw something white out of the corner of her eye and turned to see what it was. What she saw shocked her: Sesshoumaru, the young Sesshoumaru from the portrait in her room.

Sesshoumaru could see the shock and recognition in her eyes, and it startled him. They started to walk towards each other; neither yet realizing that it was a dream. But alas, all good things must come to an end, and this was only mildly pleasant. A dark cloud blotted out the sun. Both children looked up to determine the cause of the shadow over their peaceful field. It's time for the predictable, cliché moment: Naraku, of course.

Sesshoumaru felt a strange impulse overcome him, 'Protect her.' Without thinking twice about it, he jumped in front of the child form of Angel just as Naraku land before them both.

"What are you doing?" Angel hissed in his ear.

"I don't know?" he whispered back. "I just hope it works."

It didn't. Naraku, the only adult in the scene, stepped up to and backhanded the young boy, sending him flying. He then picked Angel up by the neck, similar to their first dream encounter; the difference being that this time he used only one hand. He needed only one hand to block the artery, cutting off the flow of blood to her brain, and crush her trachea.

Sesshoumaru sat up holding his bruised cheek, fleetingly glad the bone wasn't crushed. He saw the pain on Angel's face surrender to calm of death. That word reverberated in his head: "Death."

"NO!" he screamed out loud. Naraku turned and smirked at him. Then, he tossed the small body at him as if it was doll he was discarding before disappearing. Pain seared through his head, and stars danced in the blackness infringing on his vision as either her head or her shoulder, he couldn't be sure which, hit his damaged cheek. Perhaps the bone was cracked or fractured. It didn't matter as her stared down at her crumpled form. There were no messengers from the underworld... maybe she was just unconscious. No, he couldn't see the messengers for Rin either, and he couldn't hear her heartbeat at all. He didn't have the Tenseiga, and the older him was nowhere in sight. The small trickle of blood from one corner of her mouth and the bright fresh bruises marring the skin of her neck made it seem so surreal. It wasn't happening; it couldn't be happening.

He saw a drop of wetness land on one closed eyelid, then another land on and slide off of her cheek. He looked up into the fairly clear sky to see if it was raining. After a moment he realized what the drops had been, his own tears. He was crying; something he had not done in decades. But, now here he was, crying over a girl that should have meant nothing to him. He closed his eyes and put one hand to his injured cheek but pulled away when he felt tears wet his fingers. When he opened his eyes to look at them, he really opened his eyes. He was looking at his own adult hand in his own room lit by the glow of the fire. His fingers were wet from tears, and his cheek was extremely tender.

He rolled over and found himself staring into the bust of a woman. He sat up immediately and looked down at a sleeping Angel... Her chest wasn't moving... he couldn't hear her heart. The dream flashed through he mind. Gently, he turned her head so that she was facing the ceiling. There was a trickle of blood from her mouth that had spotted onto the pillow, and there was bright, fresh bruises on her already marked neck. She was dead.


	9. 9

Recap: Her chest wasn't moving... he couldn't hear her heart. The dream flashed through he mind. Gently, he turned her head so that she was facing the ceiling. There was a trickle of blood from her mouth that had spotted onto the pillow, and there was bright, fresh bruises in her already marked neck. She was dead.

The panic rose in his throat yet again. He was really beginning to hate that feeling. But then, for the first time in his life he felt a bubble of hope rise at the sight of the minions of the underworld. It wasn't so much their presence that brought on the optimistic feeling as it was the mere fact that he could see them. He reached for the Tenseiga, exactly where he had left it before bed, and felt immense joy over the fact that he could lift it. What he could see, he could destroy, particularly with the proper implements. Never before had he so relished swinging the sword through the air and feeling the scrawny bodies disintegrate in its wake. The triumph he felt cast his previous desperation to the back of his mind.

He knelt beside her, holding her much the same way he'd held Rin after he'd revived her. She opened her eyes, focusing the rubies on the golden amber orbs gazing back at her.

"Sesshoumaru," she paused. "You're probably wondering what I'm doing in your room." She sat up and faced him.

"Not until you mentioned it... But it is not important right now. Do you remember the dream you just had?" He looked her over, concern etched clearly on his usually serene face.

"Yes, but how did you-? Oh gods... no..." she breathed. She reached out and touched his tender cheek. "That's... Then that means that I..."

Sesshoumaru nodded. "You died. Naraku killed you..."

"But you brought me back," she reminded him. Sesshoumaru felt a wave pass over him, but he couldn't be sure if it was nausea or a fleeting of triumph. "Is your cheek okay?" She turned his head so she could see it better. It had swollen considerably, the bruises had gotten much worse, and the red stripes had turned a rather ugly, grape-like shade of purple.

"It's nothing; I've had worse," he said, brushing it off like a paper cut. "You're the one that died. Are you all right?"

"Hey, I'm all healed. But I think your cheekbone is broken," she said, peering at it. "They say the cheekbone is the hardest bone in the body, with the exception of Inuyasha. That's his entire skull, all the bones combined. But this is gonna hurt like a bitch while it heals. You can't exactly have a cast put on it. I'm amazed that you don't have a black eye as well."

"I said, I'm fine. I can handle pain," he said, gritting his teeth and pushing her hand away.

"Well, you should really put some ice on that. It will help the swelling go down," she insisted.

"Well, I haven't got any ice. It's summer," he growled, growing impatient.

"I think I've got some in my little bag of tricks," she said leaning over the side of the bed to where she'd dropped it. She brought it with her because I said so. "Here." She squeezed the ice bag until she heard a crack, then she gently put the cold plastic to his cheek. "There really should be another layer between your skin and the pack, but I figured since you're trying to play the tough guy, you could handle it. It has to stay on in rotations of 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off."

"Are you a healer now?" Sesshoumaru mocked.

"Actually, yes," she said, watching his expression while hiding a small smile. "Mostly just pain and stress relief, but if you want, I could try something simple to make it throb less." She could see the look in his eyes say, "Really! Oh, please, thank you!" but all he said was "Fine," through gritted teeth.

Angel got up on her knees for better leverage, then placed her hands over the side of his face. Relaxation settled over the muscles as soon as she began. She imagined wrapping her energy around shards of pain and pulling them out. At the same time, she filtered warm, healing energy through her hands and into him. After a few minutes of just pain relief, she focused in the bone. It was cracked very badly. She focused nearly all her energy on trying to get the bone to knit the crack. She poured nearly all her energy into healing that crack. It worked. It took ten exhausting minutes, but it worked. The crack was healed, the swelling had gone down completely, and the bruise had reduced to a slight discoloration that Sesshoumaru could probably heal within few hours.

"Whoa, that is the most I have ever done..."She looked a little tired but still much better than she had all day.

"Um... Ari-" he began to thank her.

"Don't bother. Consider it my thanks to you. I mean I figured I owed you after all that's happened," she sighed. "That's actually why I came in here in the first place."

"You came to my personal chambers in the middle of the night to thank me?" he said, making her sound ludicrous.

"Of course not. Rin came to my room earlier because she had a bad dream," she explained.

"Why didn't she come to me?" he wondered aloud.

"She said you were asleep, having a bad dream," Angel continued. "After she went back to her own room, I came to see if you were alright. Again, I thought I owed you that much. I thought maybe I could help. But it looks like I only ended up causing trouble..."

"You've repaid your debt," he said simply. He continued in his head, though. 'As long as you don't know I allowed myself to cry for you.'

"So... How does your cheek feel?" she asked attempting small talk.

"Much better," he replied and continued her efforts of small talk. "It appears a new day has dawned." Both looked up at the graying sky, lighting the room. The fire had been reduced to smoldering embers.

"Looks like. I guess it's back to being trapped in the stacks, just like yesterday," she sighed slightly at the prospect. "We found almost nothing useful. Let's hope today's search is more fruitful."

"Almost?" he inquired. He assumed she did not mean the information about her father. "You found something?"

"I, um... No? Nothing useful for the objective goal," she avoided lying.

"What did you find?" he demanded.

"Just a spell," she said, then added under her breath. "A little mind control spell."

"A what!" he barely avoided shouting.

"Oh, you weren't supposed to hear that..."

"Have you any idea how dangerous a spell like that could be? Especially if someone like Naraku found it." He was actually lecturing her. "Did you use it? Where is it? It must be destroyed."

"Will you relax? The spell has a lot of limitations. A person can only cast the spell once, for only one command. And a person can only have the spell cast on them once. After that, it won't work. And I mean, think about how useful it could be to you," she said, attempting to appeal to his wishes for his dear brother. "Not only that, but even if Naraku got his hands on it, he could only cast it once. Three guesses who that would probably be."

"Did you use the spell?" he prodded, trying to ignore her logic and flow with his own.

"Kinda..." she lowered her eyes, looking to the side, aiming for an innocent appearance.

"Whom did you use it on?" His voice became almost deadly calm.

"The guard stationed at my door," she said cautiously.

"That guard was there for a reason," he told her. "A reason that was clearly portrayed last night." His voice softened ever so slightly.

"I know that, but it made me feel like a prisoner. I hate that feeling. And, strange as it may sound, I think Naraku is completely gone from my system," she said, her voice becoming lighter. "I think that was meant to be his big finish, his last hoorah."

"Yes, but we can't be sure just yet," he said. "We must continue to take precautions until we can be absolutely certain that he gone permanently. Take no risks while you are still at risk."

"Gee, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were worried about me," she gave a small, rather harsh laugh. "Maybe, though... My sense of smell seems to be working again. Am I the only one that smells salt?"

"Yes," Sesshoumaru cleared his throat and attempted to conceal a slight blush, while avoiding eye contact.

"Sesshoumaru, were you-?"

"No, absolutely not." He tried to make it sound very final, but said it a bit to quickly.

"You don't even know what I was going to say," she smirked slightly.

"I- um... I knew what you were implying," he said, struggling to rescue himself.

"Really? What do you think I was implying? Salt is in a lot of things," she said, backing him into a corner. "Whatever you think I was going to say is probably what you were doing because I was the first thing you thought about and deter me from saying it out loud."

"No, I wasn't... sweating. Because, you know I was. This room got a bit to warm during the night. And sweating is a sign of nervousness and fear. And as you know, I do not get nervous and I fear nothing. But I cannot afford any enemies finding out about any signs of weakness." He fought, kicking and screaming to force his way out of that corner.

"Sweat has a distinct smell... I don't think I smell sweat, at least, not enough for you to worry about," she said, placatingly. "But I think I do smell something else..."

"No, you don't," he told her. "You smell nothing."

"Now, you're starting to sound like me," she half-grinned. "That's how I talk to my friends when they noticed something I didn't want them to notice. Except, I usually either get really vicious or feign innocence and look away. I know you think I smell something you don't want me to smell. Now I have to know what I smell."

"Curiosity killed the cat," he said stiffly.

"But I don't see any kitties," she looked around. "I see a big puppy, but no kitties."

Sesshoumaru looked properly insulted. "I'm not-"

"Man," she said, suddenly standing on the bed and stretching. "Dying then healing a broken bone can really take it out of you. I'm about ready for another nap."

"No, you are not," he stood as well, forgetting something very important.

"It's a big morning for you, isn't it?" she said, looking away with a bright blush easily visible on her cheeks.

"Oro?" he hated being confused. He noticed her hand pointed down towards his waist. Following this, his cheeks nearly matched hers, and he was instantly holding a sheet to just under his navel. What he had forgotten was that he had decided not to wear a robe to bed... or pants... or a haori... or anything at all. Not to mention that he hadn't completely... deflated...

"No, you're right I don't need a nap anymore," she said, facing him. A smile had crept to her lips as she was trying desperately not to laugh, and she was still blushing, which wasn't helping matters. "Well, I think I'll go change for the day." She hopped off the bed, humming Gackt, and left the room.

"I hate mornings..." Sesshoumaru grumbled to himself.

Gackt is a J-Rock star really popular in Japan. He poses nude a lot.

What did you think? I didn't plan for that to happen, I swear! I just let the story flow. It has a life of its own. I'm not really even sure exactly how it's going to end.


	10. 10

Recap: "No, you're right I don't need a nap anymore," she said, facing him. A smile had crept to her lips as she was trying desperately not to laugh, and she was still blushing, which wasn't helping matters. "Well, I think I'll go change for the day." She hopped off the bed, humming Gackt, and left the room.

"I hate mornings..." Sesshoumaru grumbled to himself.

22222222

"Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin called, running down the hall to him when he emerged, fully dressed, from his room. "Rin-chan she really likes Angel-sama! Angel-sama helped Rin-chan last night when Rin-chan had a bad dream."

"I know, Rin," Sesshoumaru said placatingly. "Where is Angel?"

"The library," Rin said before skipping off again.

"She's in the library?" he said, talking to himself. He went to the library to find he sitting with three books opened before her, pouring over all of them, cross-referencing this and double-checking that.

"Sesshoumaru, how's you Chinese?" she asked when she noticed him.

"Decent," he responded. "Why?"

"I think found the perfect spell, but it's in Chinese and so are some of the instructions. I got the general idea from the Hiragana translation, but I can't read Chinese, nor can I speak it," she said without looking up. She simply continued flipping pages and jumping from one book to another.

"Show it to me," he said. She handed the book to him and pointed to the spell and its instructions. "Return from whence it came..." He read aloud. "It seems like a good spell for our purposes."

Angel beamed.

"I see only one problem," he said slowly.

"What's that?" she asked, peaking another look at the text as he continued to hold it.

"It says it must be performed by a mate." His voice was almost cautious.

"Those were some important instructions in the Chinese," she said, attempting to play off her shock. In her head she was saying, "What? A mate! Oh my god! What am I gonna do? What if this is the only spell we can find! Oh, shit! Oh, fuck! Oh, crap!"

"No, it's here in Japanese," he indicated with one clawed finger.

"That's Chinese," she said, sounding a bit confused.

"No, it's Japanese," he insisted, his eyebrows raised.

"Oh, I see. It's old-style kanji. How the hell am I supposed to read that?"

"Aside from that, it should suit our purposes..." he hesitated.

"What? Is something wrong?" she questioned, a hint of concern in her voice.

"No, nothing's wring from what I see... But, there is something that doesn't seem quite right," he elaborated. "The spell is meant to be said by a mate, but why would a demon who knows the value of one's mate to oneself write a spell to separate them?"

"Let it see that once more," she said, peaking over the side again. "I see, right here. Hiragana, 'iku' can mean he, she, it, we, they, etc. go/goes. I think it is meant to move both partners. I made a mistake choosing this spell."

For some strange reason, hearing her say that gave Sesshoumaru a funny, hollow feeling in his chest and stomach, as if everything inside him had been sucked out. "I suppose we will just have to keep looking... In the mean time," he tried to hide it. "I believe it is time for breakfast."

"Are you sure you're all right? Maybe Naraku hit you harder than we thought?" she suggested.

"I'm fine," his voice hardened.

"Now, you sound more like the old you. But, I'm not sure if that's a good thing." She gave him a lopsided grin. "You said breakfast, right? Let's go then." She walked out an in the general direction of the dining hall. Sesshoumaru was left standing there for a moment, wondering what she meant before following her. They sat at breakfast avoinding eye contact, glancing at each other occassionally. The uncomfortable silence this time was different from the tension of the two previous meals. This time, both were mulling over the morning's happenings and what was going to happen with any transportation spells. For a moment, each seriously considered doing what it took to perform the only nearly suitable spell they'd found.Then they rememberedthat it would mean bringing Sesshoumaru to Angel's world.

After this thought, Angel's mind strayed to memories of her father. How a man with no identifiable past managed to to become so successful. The story her father had told her had formed a mini-movie in her head. (One that will be posted as a separate chapter if you so wish to read it.) They both finished their food and went back to the library. Both knew they would have to take eventually.

"Thank you, Sesshoumaru," Angel said, making the decision to be the first to break the silence.

"Nani?"

"For bringing me back, I mean," she elaborated. "And for crying for me."

"Nani!" Oh, the humiliation! For this girl to know he shed tears for her. "I was only a child in that dream." He fumbled for an excuse.

She didn't know why she'd said it. She knew it would only create even more tension. And she thanked people about as often as she gave a heartfelt apology. And she usually wound up with her foot in her mouth. This was turning out no different. She'd been expecting Sesshoumaru to deny crying, but she wasn't prepared, nor did she understand why it hurt when he refused to admit he felt even the slightest inkling of affection towards her. "No, I know. I just meant.. thanks," she finished and hid herself behind a stack of 13th century texts.

It turned into yet another day of awkward silence and avoidance. At least this time they were less worried about Naraku, and Sesshoumaru did not even attempt to post a guard at her door when they each went tobed. An hour later, Angel was lying on her bed, flipping through a book in a last futile attempt to find a suitable spell before sleep. She placed the book on the floor and sat up when she heard someone knock on her door. For some strange reaon, her nose could not identify the person's scent.

She stood when she heard Sesshoumaru's voice on the other side of the door. "Angel-san?" Why was he being so formal all of a sudden?

"Come in, Sesshoumaru," she said.

I know it was a short chapter, but it was more of a set up for the next, far more dramatic chapter.


	11. 11

Warning: Rape

Recap: She stood when she heard Sesshoumaru's voice on the other side of the door. "Angel-san?" Why was he being so formal all of a sudden?

"Come in, Sesshoumaru," she said.

He entered, looking at the ground for some reason. His eyes were hidden behind his bangs.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, hoping he would look up to answer her.

"No," he shook his head, keeping it lowered slightly.

"Then what's going on? What did you want to see me about? Is it anything to do with what I said at breakfast?" she needed him to look at her, tell her what was the matter.

"It's nothing to do with breakfast," he said, continuing to hide his eyes. "Do you recall that spell we found?"

"Which spell?" she asked, knowing full well the one he was talking about.

"You know which one. Return From Whence It Came," he reminded her. "I think you should use it."

"I can't Sesshoumaru, you know that. It requires-"

"I know what it requires," he said roughly. "Why don't we make it so you _can_ use it?" He stepped forward, backing her into a wall, and pressed his lips hard against hers, putting one hand on the wall, the other pulling the already-loose night robe off her shoulder.

She turned her head away, breaking the kiss. "Sesshoumaru, what's gotten into you? You're acting like a completely different pers-" He cut her off but taking his hand from the wall and turning her head back to him. He kissed her again, this time more deeply, his tongue plunging into the hot cavern of her mouth. Angel felt him press his arousal against her abdomen and moaned into the kiss. She could feel the heat churning in her gut.

The tall figure before her could smell her lust, which only excited him further. He hitched her legs up around his waist and carried her to the bed. He kissed down her neck, one of his hands pulling her garments off while the other worked at disrobing himself. He kissed down to her chest, along the curve of the pale flesh of one breast and took the pink, hardened nippled into his mouth. He swirled his tongue around it, tasting before he sucked vigrously, a fang grazing over the sensitive skin, drawing a thin line of blood.

Angel closed her eyes against the brief moment of pain. She had he fingers entwined in the long silver locks. When he'd finally finished untying two knots, each with one hand, he released the breast and moved up so that his erection was at her entrance.

When Angel's hand passed over the flesh of his bare back, she felt something strange. She moved her hand so that she could feel it again, properly. She also thought it odd that he seemed to be waiting for her to do so. She realized that the skin felt scarred, so she lifted her head to see, brushing aside the hair. What she saw shocked her: a spider-shaped scar. "Naraku..." she breathed.

"Yes," he answered, pushing her back down and finally letting her see his dark red eyes, letting the illusion fall as he slammed into her and heard her cry out.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sesshoumaru was awakened by the scent of lust and Naraku. But what had truly jerked him from his slumber was Angel's cry of pain. He practically flew down the hall to her room and threw the door open to see Naraku pumping into her as Angel growled and tried to push him off. Sesshoumaru tore Naraku of her and threw him across the room. He caught sight of Angel's body, blood dripping from scratches and bite-marks, before she tried to cover up with the robe underneath her. How badly he wanted to just hold and comfort her, but at the moment, he had another problem to deal with, one that was quickly recoving from his recent collision with a wall.

Sesshoumaru stepped over and dragged Naraku up by his hair. "How dare you come into my home and commit this hideous act," his voice was low and threatening. "I cannot allow you to live for this."

"Sesshoumaru, how's your cheek?" Naraku's voice was as calm and taunting as ever, despite being stark naked and Sesshoumaru painfully tugging his hair.

"Why did you do this?" Sesshoumaru demanded.

"How could I resist such a tempting young whore?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened and became tinted with red in his rage as he began mercilessly wailing on Naraku. Punching, kicking, and clawing every inch of him he could reach. Until he heard a small voice. Angel had finished wretching over the side of the bed and was asking him to stop. Why on earth would he stop? More importantly, why would she want him to?

She gave him an answer. "I want to know why he killed my mother and tried to kill me eighteen years ago," she said softly.

"Why should I tell you?" he taunted again.

"Because if you do not, your death will all the more painful," Sesshoumaru said. "Answer her." He gave Naraku's hair another painful yank as incentive. It served a reverse purpose. The dark, purplish miasma filled the room, choking the other two and stinging Angel's open wounds. A sharp appendage that reminded them of a spider's leg pieced Sesshoumaru in the shoulder of the arm that was holding Naraku, causing him to release the vile thing. Naraku took the opportunity to escape.

"Damn!" Sesshoumaru shouted when he realized Naraku was gone. "I should have killed him when I had the chance." He clutched his bleeding shoulder while trying to guard his face from the clearing smog. When it had cleared enough so that he could breathe without gagging, he looked up and saw Angel sitting on the bed, hugging the robe to herself and closing her eyes against the present pain and horrifying new memory. He walked over and sat on the end of the bed. Then, he did what he's been longing to do since he pulled Naraku off her. He pulled her into his lap and just held her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"What?" What had she to be sorry for?

"Naraku got away because I asked you to wait. And you got injured; that's the second time I got you hurt," she wasn't crying, but what she was saying made no sense. It wasn't her fault. "And now I'm getting blood all over your robe." Sesshoumaru cleared his throat and indicated his shoulder.

"The only one to blame here is Naraku. But I do have something to ask you," he paused; when she didn't object, he continued. "Why didn't you use your powers?"

"My kind... Our bodies don't allow us to use our most powerful attacks when we're um... so that we don't accidentally kill our... the person we're..." She couldn't even say it. "And even before... I couldn't catch his scent; and he looked like you. That's why I allowed him to get so close. He looked like you; and he knew about the transportation spell from this morning. I was just sloppy. I could have stopped it. I should have realized it wasn't you."

"Stop, just stop." He had to halt her self-blaming babble. "It wasn't your fault. None of this was your fault. How can I make you believe that?" He was at his wits' end. He was never any good at dealing with emotions; that's why he always kept his at arms' length.

"Dealing with him the last two days were like something out of Nightmare on Elm Street, which I guess you wouldn't get. I just want to know why. Why he tried to kill me when I was younger. Why he brought me here now. Why he's been targetting me. Why he did this. I just need to know."

"I know you do. And I promise we will find out," he tried the only optional path of comfort and reassurance. "For tonight though, why don't we both wash the blood off, get bandaged, and get some sleep, if you feel you can." She nodded, then both looked around the room. It looked ransacked and there was a pool of vomit on one side of the bed. "Would you like to sleep in my room tonight?" She nodded again. Of course, when she'd fallen asleep in his room the previous night, she'd died. Apparently, she could deal that memory more easily than the one that occurred in her room.

They went down to the hotspring together, Angel leaning heavily on Sesshoumaru for both physical and mental support. When she went to undress, Sesshoumaru gave her privacy. He was going to stand guard outside the door, but she stopped him. "Please, don't leave me alone... No, I mean, let me have a look at your shoulder..."

Sesshoumaru agreed. It hurt to see her so scared but unwilling to admit it. Right now, he wanted to make her feel safe, and he knew the only way to do that completely would be to make sure Naraku was dead, once and for all. But, at that exact moment, all he could do was stay with her and try to make her not feel helpless.

They entered the water together, this time not sitting apart. Angel washed the blood off her skin, letting the herbal water soothe the flesh wounds. Sesshomaru immediately washed all traces of Naraku's poisonous miasma from his flesh and wound to prevent any infection and to just get it off him. When Angel was clean enough before she started to scrub her skin off, she turned her attention to Sesshoumaru's wounded shoulder. She place a hand on each side, the entrance and exit wounds, to assess the damage done.

"This isn't be too bad. It just tissue damage. No bones or serious muscle tissue was damaged. I can heal this easily in a matter of minutes. Do you want me to?" She looked up at him.

"I..." He did want her too. He needed to be in top fighting condition. He was planning on going after Naraku the next day. But he also knew her energy should be put toward herself.

She could see that he was having a diffucult time deciding. "I think using up a little bit of energy will help me sleep," she said, trying to convince him to let her heal him.

"Alright, but only what I can't heal over night," he said, allowing her to aply a bit more preasure to the wound.

She began by drawing warmth away from the area, slowing the bloodflow . Then, she focused on the tissue and muscle reattaching themselves to each other. Lastly, whilst encouraging the skin to regrow, she let the warmth flow back to both soothe and encourage bloodflow again. She finished and washed the blood off her hands. "It might feel a little sore tonight, but you should be good as new by morning," she forced a smile.

"Fine. Are you cleaned up?" Sesshoumaru had a sudden need to get out of the water and back to his room. When she nodded, he helped her out of the water then got out himself. They dressed and walked up to Sesshoumaru's room. Angel was leaning on him less. She seemed to better able to handle it than she had earlier. When they were inside the room, Sesshoumaru gave her a clean robe to change into from the bloody one. She took it gratefully and changed quickly. Sesshoumaru changed into a robe without a bloody hole in the shoulder.

They climbed into the bed, Sesshoumaru allowing her space if she felt she didn't want to be near him while she slept. She did. She snuggled against his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her in a protective embrace. After all the stresses and strains of the day, she fell asleep almost instantly. 'Perhaps,' Sesshoumaru thought. 'Perhaps she does feel safe with me.' He decided he would do everything in his power to make her dream happy dreams. No Naraku. He knew he would have to sleep as well, and, therefore, could not simply create dreams for her, but he could delve into her memories and remind her of happy moments. He could do that in his sleep.

Before falling asleep, he assimilated himself into her memories so that he could more easily sift through them with less concentration. It was only as he felt sleep infringing on his consciousness that he began working his way through the memories. There were few signigicantly uplifting memories in her childhood, save for a few cute moments when she was a toddler. It was when she was a teenager that the genuinely happy memories surfaced. Laughing and joking with friends in a hallway lined with many skinny metal doors. Rehearsing and performing in plays. Even in sleep, Sesshoumaru could feel her relax with these images filling her mind.

After he fell asleep, he allowed what he deemed the most pleasant memories to play full out with small blips from others. She was dancing around her kitchen to happy Psycho le Cemu j-rock making fudge or something, singing her own little song to the music that had absolutely nothing to do with the song actually playing. She was staring at a computer screen wondering about the name of the godly being with the red stripes on his cheeks and blue crescent moon on his forehead. She was sitting with a group of friends in a school hallway. Her foot fell asleep, so she got up to stomp it to try to wake it up and get the blood flowing again. She began all sorts of odd movements, like shaking her leg in the air, looking very silly but having a fabulous time, joking with her friends about it. Of course, doing so almost caused her to fall into the door of the mens' faculty bathroom. This resulted in a dogpile across the hall from the door and a tickle fight. It ended when they all had to go to class. She was was liturally waltzing down the sidewalk in the city with her friends telling her to stop attracting attention to herself but smiling all the same.

Sesshoumaru came across something very odd. The memories that seemed to stand out as the most enjoyable seemed to be almost highlighted by Angel in her own mind. There were some recent memories that were practically highlighted, circled, underlined, and bolded. Waking up in an unfamiliar room then having a familiar voice answer at the door. Waking to find herself sitting in the lap of a man gazing down at her with concern clearly letched across his face. Waking in the arms of the same man, this time tears glistening in his eyes. Two memories of sharing time in the hotspring with this man. Falling asleep, feeling safe, in his arms. Of course nearly all of these had rather unpleasant memories directly before them, but these helped her to ignore those.

That last one had been particularly special to her. But there was another that he'd somehow skipped over. Odd especially because this one was another special recollection. She walked through a curtain, out into the daylight and saw a divine being standing in the sun. This was that first time she ever actually saw, in person, the man she'd come to love.

Sesshoumaru woke with a start at that word, _love_ . Did she? Could he? He looked down at the sleeping figure in his arms. He could clearly see a smile on her lips. He decided he would worry about it in the morning and went back to sleep. Only instead of memories, he was dealing with his own issues in his own dreams, the way it should be.

Okay, I know rape is very Mary-Sue-ish, but at least I didn't pull a "Oh, I was raped; screw me to make me feel better" overly dramatic, throws head back with hand on forehead in the style of old movies. Constructive critism and praises only, no mean flames. If you don't have something nice to say, at least be polite about it.


	12. 12

Sorry it took so long, high school took over my life. Okay, this may get a bit angsty, so be patient with me. You know I always try to throw in some occasional comic relief. I know self-inerts are automatic mary-sue's, but again, you know I try to keep the cliché mary-sue moments to a minimum.

Don't own it, wish I did, blah, blah, blah... And I don't own Malice Mizer... If I did, they would still be together, Kami would still be alive (because I said so), Gackt and Klaha would split duties as lead singer, and Mana would pull double duty between them and Moi Dix Mois.

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The next morning Sesshoumaru awoke and looked down at the pillow in his arms... Wait, pillow? Wasn't he holding Angel? Maybe it was a dream... Which means, maybe that horrible incident was a contrivance of his imagination. He leaned up on one arm and felt a sharp pain shoot through it up to the shoulder... No, it wasn't a dream, then where was Angel?

She'd probably just woken up early and went to do something. He got up to go look for her. He checked the library but only found missing the book in which she'd found the spell and the one from which she'd found out about her father. He searched the garden up and down but found no sign of her there. He checked the hotspring, the dining hall, and Rin's quarters. Rin finally told him she'd seen Angel in her old room earlier that morning. Strange, he would've thought that to be the last place she would want to be. He went to see if she was still there, as he had looked everywhere else.

What he found shocked him. On the bed, laid carefully, was the white silk robe she'd been wearing when she went to sleep in his room; on top of it was a note.

Dear Sesshoumaru,

I'm very grateful for everything you've done for me in the time I spent in your home.

I don't think I'll ever be able to repay you. I know you are wondering where I've gone.

I've borrowed Ah and Un (they will be returned when I arrive at my destination)

and the books you've probably already found missing from your library.

As for my desination... I have cast a spell on this paper so that it will not appear unless you say the words

"I promise not to search for Angel."

I know that you are a man of your word and would not break that promise.

Love,

Angel Youkai

Sesshoumaru knew that this was a ludicrous idea. Yes, he was a man of his word, lying was beneath him, but so was letting Angel go off by herself in unfamiliar territory with a sociopathic killer after her. He wondered what would happen if he said the words on the paper and added a few more words so that he could search for her without lying.

Then, it struck him, he didn't need what it said on the paper, there was only one place she would go to find the truth, and it wasn't back to her time. Her father's former home, the palace of the Lord of the Southern Lands.

He decided to travel this one alone. After making preparations in the palace for his absence, as he did not know how long he would be gone, ordering Jaken to watch after Rin, and ordering Rin not to drive Jaken completely out of his mind, he set out on the relatively short flight to the Southern Lands. Flying with his own cloudy powers was much faster than Ah and Un, but the dragon was necessary when traveling with Rin, mostly for her protection when he was not with the child.

"Might I ask what your business is, my lord?" asked one of the guards almost immediately upon his arrival.

Sesshoumaru decided he should find out what to expect before he got inside. "Has a young woman arrived this morning?"

"No, my lord," the guard responded.

"When she does, let her in, but do not tell her I am here. I intend to surprise her. She has long blue hair and will either be wearing a blue and green kimono or strange, tight black and green clothes. Also," he added. "Do not ask her any questions." He had given a description of her just in case she did not appear on Ah and Un.

He walked the winding corridors, having visited the Southern Lands enough times to be able to find his way to most of the main rooms. He made his way to the reception hall; he knew that though he'd seen no one after speaking to the guard and he'd moved rather quickly, news of his arrival had already traveled to the Lord.

As he expected, Sesshoumaru found the young Lord of the Southern Lands looking ready and relaxed, prim and proper, as if the palace had been awaiting his arrival for days at a minimum. "What can we help you with, Lord Sesshoumaru?" the blue-haired demon set his ruby gaze on the golden eyes of Sesshoumaru. "And might I ask why you would come to my palace looking for a woman?"

"I have strong reason to believe she will be coming here," he said shortly. He was not foolish enough to mention her connection to the Lord's younger brother. It was common knowledge that the Southern Lord was unable to have an heir. It was also rampant rumor that nearly all the concubines of the beautiful lord were male. Scandalous as that may seem to other nobles, Sesshoumaru didn't really give a damn about the man's sexual preference. But being that the young lord was unable to have children, if Angel truly was the child of his younger brother, he might not allow her to make it known. Just as Sesshoumaru was afraid Inuyasha might someday want recognition and power among the nobles, threatening Sesshoumaru's claim to his title, he was sure this lord was not much different. However, he'd believed his brother dead for nearly twenty years, and for all Sesshoumaru knew, they may have had a much better relationship with one another. Sesshoumaru's silent musings were interrupted when his fellow lord cleared his throat.

A guard had just spoken quietly to him before he spoke. "It seems your intuition was correct, your young lady has just arrived. And from what I'm told, she bears a striking resemblance to my family. Why could that be?"

Sesshoumaru's response was cut short by Angel being led into the hall. "Sesshoumaru, what are you doing here!" she was shocked, thinking he'd broken his word. "How could you?"

"I didn't," he stated firmly, knowing exactly what she meant. "I guessed without that message." He tried to put those fears to rest but to no avail.

"You knew I didn't want you to come. Why did you?" she asked, attempting to maintain her composure.

"Those are reasons better discussed in private, if Lord Yukio will spare us a room for our conversation," he said, directing the second half of the sentence to the lord.

"But of course. Maiko, show them to their prepared room in the east wing," he commanded. A young woman stepped up from the back wall and waited for them to follow her. Neither Sesshoumaru, nor Angel said anything about the fact they'd been given a room together. But Angel did wonder how Yukio had known to prepare a room, especially for two.

When Maiko had left them alone, Sesshoumaru turned to her and asked, "Why did you leave?"

"I had to," she said simply. "I couldn't stay. At least not without finding some answers. Did you want me to stay?" She sat in a chair near a desk at the wall waiting for his answer.

"You should not be wandering about the countryside in your-"

"What? My what? My condition!" she demanded hostilely, not rising from the chair.

"Your state of mind," he said coolly. "You- you need..." He surveyed her. She looked exhausted. She had been flying for almost two days, had she slept at all? "You need rest, for now."

"No. I can't do that. It looks to me like that's how he finds me. Remember the dream three nights ago... I died. I don't want to do that again anytime soon. Sleep deprivation is something I can deal with, as long as it means that..." She searched for a suitable term. "Mutated monstrosity can't find me."

"He won't lay a finger on you. Let me protect you," he said, trying to keep the pleading out of his voice.

"I don't need your protection anymore. I'm-"

"Don't say it," he said suddenly. "Don't say you're a big girl. You can't take care of yourself. You can't do it alone. Please, let me help..."

"Did I just hear the word 'please' escape the lips of Lord Sesshoumaru? Now I've heard it all," Lord Yukio interrupted, standing in the doorway. "I couldn't help myself. You were taking a long time, and I was getting bored, so I came to see if you were taking advantage of the private room."

"I am not his mate," Angel said coldly. Sesshoumaru still could not fathom why the words stung as they did. He had forgotten why he awoke from his slumber with Angel two nights before.

"I never said you were. You seem more like a-"

"Lord Yukio," Sesshoumaru set a murderous gaze on him, daring him to finish the sentence. "We've only just begun our discussion, and we are both tired from traveling. We need a bit more time to continue our conversation and refresh ourselves."

"Of course... I will send for you when the evening meal is prepared." His voice and smooth movements reminded Angel strongly of a vampire, despite the fact that she knew he was her uncle, and therefore probably not a vampire.

"Man, he's kind of a bitch. Is he gay?" she asked Sesshoumaru as soon as he was out of earshot.

"How did you know?" Was she really that perceptive?

"My gay-dar was sending up a flare. I'm kidding. I was doing a lot of reading the other day, remember. I came across some stuff, you know rumors and such. Anyway, what was he going to say that you stopped him? I seem more like a what?"

"It does not mat-"

"Let me guess, then. A whore, a concubine, am I getting close? Listen, I don't know if you stopped him because you didn't want him to insult me or because you didn't want him to remind me what happened. And right now I don't care. Let me let you in on something. I have come to terms with it. Even though you guys don't have therapy or victims' counseling, I know enough... It wasn't my fault, can't change the past, blah, blah, blah... I wasn't a virgin to begin with, so I can just accept it and move on. The only reason I even came here was to find the truth. I'm not trying to get close to my family or get some kind of inheritance or recognition. I just want to know why Naraku was targeting my family and now me."

"Okay..." Sesshoumaru said slowly, even though he had no idea what therapy was or how she'd come to all the conclusions. "If you know all this, let me ask you. Do you realize that you are betraying you own heart?"

"What? Have you got a screw loose? Did you fall off your little cloud? Betraying my heart, where the fuck did you come up with that?" she said, becoming very snippy, to state the obvious.

"I got it from you. I know... how you feel about me. Your memories of me are highlighted, and I know that you... love me." He was very awkward saying that. Talking about feelings, even someone else's was new and uncomfortable for him. Talk about therapy.

"That dream... that was you! Oh, I'm mad now. It's impolite to go through my memories like files on disk. That's just... Ooh, I'm not talking to you for a while."

This confused Sesshoumaru even more. True, he hadn't confessed his own feelings about anything, but he told her that he knew about hers and didn't reject them. And he was trying to show her that he cared. He wouldn't even have been there if he didn't. Now, she was angry with him. Women are so confusing. "What did I do wrong?" He just needed to know.

"What if I had gone through your memories. Think about that and let it fester... jerk," she stalked over and sat on the bed. She then realized she couldn't really go anywhere. She didn't want to leave the room because she really didn't want to deal with Yukio, plus she didn't know her way around and didn't want to get lost. But, she didn't want to stay. She decided to let boredom sink in. She began humming an old Malice Mizer song, "Ma Cherie," and as she was singing, she realized how soft and comfortable the bed felt. She lay down and was out before even finishing the song.

Noticing that her singing had trailed off as well as her heartbeat and breathing evening and slowing, Sesshoumaru leaned over her to see if she was asleep. Briefly, he wondered which course of action he should take. If that was indeed the way Naraku found her, he did not want a repeat of any past incident; he also did not want Angel afraid of sleeping. But he had been rebuked for using the only method he'd found that kept her safe. Finally, he came to the only optional conclusion. He would rather risk her being angry and safe than dead or worse.

He crawled onto the bed and lay next to her. He once again delved into her mind, her memory banks. Since she'd been humming before she fell asleep, Sesshoumaru decided to just replay music related memories for her. Concerts, music videos, dancing, and the like were memories being revisited while Angel slept. Invariably, Sesshoumaru, also rather tired from everything happening in the past few days, fell asleep. In his sleep, he rolled and protectively wrapped his arm around her, at which point, she snuggled into his chest.

Two hours later, they were still asleep and nothing had been resolved. It was at this time that Maiko knocked on the door to summon them to the main dining hall. Sesshoumaru mumbled some untranslatable, sleep garbled response which she took to mean "Enter."

"Oh my!" her shocked outburst woke both occupants of the bed. The fact that their clothes were still on didn't manage to wriggle its way into the rumors that flew there after. "I'm sorry, I just came to inform you that the evening meal has been prepared and Lord Yukio has summoned you to the dining hall." She darted down the hall without giving anyone a chance for further explanation.

Angel sat at dinner in a severe funk, both over what Sesshoumaru had done, _again_, and what she knew her uncle was thinking. Sesshoumaru was in a funk over Angel's funk, and also over what he knew were Yukio's thoughts. Yukio, on the other hand, was quite smug; they knew why.

"You know," Yukio said, causing them to almost flinch. "Angel, you are the spitting image of my younger brother."

They were surprised by the change in subject, but nervous for the new direction it was taking. If he continued, things could get very bad. There was no telling what he would do if he figured out that Angel was related to him. If he would accept her, or if he would make sure she would gain no recognition as a member of the family, which could prove deadly.

"I would hate to think you are keeping a member of my family as a pet, Sesshoumaru," Yukio almost sneered.

"I'm nobody's pet!" Angel shouted indignantly.

"What about a member of my family?" When she didn't answer right away, a mistake, he asked, "Do you want to know what happened to my brother? No one quite knows. His mate was murdered, and he and their child disappeared."

"Was he blamed for the murder?" she asked, attempting to act nonchalant.

"No, it was generally assumed that they had been killed as well. Why? Is palace intrigue a matter of interest to you?" he asked, looking down his nose at her.

"No. It was just the way you phrased it, made it sound as if… Well, it doesn't really matter." She was determined not to let him get under her skin. She would get the answers she came for and spend as little time as possible with her father's brother.

"Why exactly did you come here?" Yukio asked before Angel could continue. "You must have some staggering reasons for being here if Sesshoumaru knew you would run away here."

At this, Sesshoumaru thought it wise to intervene. "Come now, Yukio, you make me sound thick. Surely you are not implying that I could not easily discern the actions of a foolish, headstrong girl for myself."

"Well, excuse me for having a mind of my own and not asking for permission to breathe," Angel hissed.

"You have gotten yourself into a few bad positions…" he trailed off, realizing she might not understand what he was doing.

"Fuck you very much for reminding me of that!" She didn't understand. Instead, she rose from the table and stormed out of the dining hall, praying that she would find her room without getting lost.

"Sesshoumaru, having problems controlling your woman?" Yukio leaned back in a pose of graceful boredom. "She seems quite willful. What could you possibly see in her?"

"She certainly keeps things interesting. I have not felt an ounce of boredom since the moment I met her. But," he added. "Despite what you may think, I have not bedded her."

"Is that supposed to change my opinion of her? She's still a willful whore. Being my niece does not change that fact." He looked Sesshoumaru over once. "Or is that supposed to keep up my opinion of you?"

"I do not particularly care what you think of me, Yukio-"

"Right, you don't seem to care what anyone thinks. Of course, I don't believe that's true. If it were, you would have no need for that cool mask you wear. We only hide our emotions when we care what others think, even if, by others, we mean enemies that might exploit the weakness of emotion. So, despite what you may say, you do care what others think of you, even me."

Sesshoumaru was surprised by this moment of wisdom from the usually childish lord.

"And despite what you might hope," Yukio continued. "I don't think of you in that way. You may be gorgeous, but you're not my type."

"Since you are apparently in the mood to share," Sesshoumaru ventured. "What do actually think of Angel?"

"I'm just screwing with her. I know she's not a whore. And I know what you really think of her. So you do care what I think of you, or you wouldn't have put on a show like that. But I don't think she knows it was a show. I think you should go apologize." The young lord seemed like a completely different person.

"This Sesshoumaru has never apologized for anything in his life," he said, while at the same time, rising from his seat. "And she would have to be a fool not to know."

"Well, she seems to be in a delicate state at the moment. You go do or say what whatever it is you need to, but remember, she's not to know what a nice guy I really am. Later, we can lay all cards on the table and discuss why you are actually here," Yukio said, ushering Sesshoumaru toward the hall. He finally stopped arguing and went off to the room he shared with Angel. He wasn't quite sure why, but he knocked before sliding the door open.

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Okay, I've finally finished the chapter! I had it mostly done… in October. Then, over break, I watched that last 40 or 50 episodes of the anime, and it made me sad that it was over.. and I was inspired. And I realized that I hadn't touched this fic since October. Sorry..

Because of you guys, this story officially has over 300 hits!

Special thanks to ColdSypher, I hadn't even thought of how she would react, so that bit of the story goes out to you.

And of course, thanks to everyone that reviewed. , but remember, I still want more.

Notes:

Yukio means "gets what he wants"

I watch way too much Law & Order: SVU, not that that makes me any sort of expert on rape, nor do I know or want to know what it is like to be raped. All rapists and child molesters should get the needle (among other things) for irreparable harm done and the crime committed... B.D. Wong rocketh meh sox.


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